You can see my title today is
Confidence in the Cross. We're going to look at three
verses here in the book of Galatians. And before we talk about the
confidence, I want to say a lot about that. But before we do
that, let's talk about the cross a little bit first. The cross
we have confidence in. You know the cross is the focal
point of time. It divides what we know as time.
Everything before the cross was looking forward to it and everything
since the cross is looking back on it. So it's the focal point
of our history. It's also the focal point of
the scriptures. Look at Genesis 3 and verse 15. This is all the way back right
after the fall now. And he's speaking to the serpent
here. Satan. God is. And he said, And I will
put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and
her seed. It shall bruise thy head, and
thou shalt bruise his heel. See, this is God telling Satan
that the God-man who is the woman's seed, born without the aid of
man, the woman's seed. He's telling Satan that this
God-man would come in time and crush his head, although he would,
on the cross, bruise his heel. What's he talking about? He's
talking about the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ here. Look
on at Isaiah chapter 9, verses 6 through 7. For unto us a child
is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon
his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor,
the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end. Upon the throne of David and
upon his kingdom to order it, and to establish it with judgment
and with justice from henceforth even for evermore the zeal of
the Lord of hosts will perform it." Well, here's Isaiah writing
about that same God-man spoken of back in Genesis, the child
born and the son given. And that government is the government
of grace which would rest on him, rest on his shoulder, which
he would establish with judgment and with justice or with righteousness
forever. What's Isaiah writing about?
He's writing about the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. Look
at Luke chapter 9 and verse 29. And as he, Christ, prayed, the
fashion of his countenance was altered, and his raiment was
white and glistering. And behold, there talked with
him two men, which were Moses and Elias, or Elijah, who appeared
in glory, and spake of his decease, which he should accomplish at
Jerusalem." This is Christ on the Mount of Transfiguration.
And you have Moses there representing the law and Elijah representing
the prophet, speaking of Christ, of his decease, of his death,
of his cross. And notice they spoke not of
the cross as a shame or as a failure, but as an accomplishment. That's
what a lot of people don't know in our generation. The cross
of Christ was an accomplishment for a people chosen of God. But
we're talking about the focal point of the scriptures being
the cross. Paul told the Corinthian believers that the cross of the
Lord Jesus Christ was the totality of his message. Look at 1 Corinthians
chapter 2 and verse 2. Paul said, for I determined not
to know anything among you save or except Jesus Christ and him
crucified. And then look at 1 Corinthians
1, 18 and then 23 through 24. For the preaching of the cross
is to them that perish, them that are perishing. The preaching
of the cross is foolishness, but unto us which are being saved,
it is the power of God. We preach Christ crucified unto
the Jews a stumbling block, unto the Greeks foolishness, but unto
them which are called both Jews and Greeks, Christ, the power
of God. and the wisdom of God. And I
could go to a lot of other passages in the scripture and show you
that the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ is the focal point of
the scriptures, but I've chosen today to concentrate our thinking
on just three verses here in the book of Galatians. In this
context we're looking at, Paul encourages these believers, as
well as us in this generation and in every generation to put
our confidence in nothing but the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Look at Galatians 6 and verse 14. These are familiar verses
to most of us. We quote them quite often. Paul
writes here in the end of this book, he says, But God forbid
that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,
by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world. That word glory, you know, it
means to boast. It means to have confidence in. That's where I got the title
of this message. Confidence in the cross, because that's what
he's talking about here. Paul is exhorting these Galatian believers
to find all their confidence before God in Christ and Christ
alone. God forbid that I should boast
of a right standing with God. God forbid that I should have
any confidence of any measure of acceptance with God except
in one place, in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. He's not
forbidding confidence. He's just forbidding confidence
in anything but the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now we're
going to look further at this verse, but I've got to set the
context for you a little bit. We don't like to take things
out of context. I'd like you to know that I'm not just pulling
a verse out here, one there. So let's look at the context.
Look on at Galatians 6 and verse 15. It says, for in Christ Jesus
neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision,
but a new creature. As I told you, Paul is concluding
his statement here to the Galatians. He's exhorting them here in this
final chapter. And he says, God forbid, may
it never be He's emphatic because these believers in Galatia are
being encouraged to put confidence in other things, other than the
cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. They're being encouraged to find
confidence, for instance, in the observing of days. Look at
Galatians 4, verses 9 through 10. But now, after you have known
God, or rather, are known of God, how turn you again to the
weak and beggarly elements, whereunto you desire again to be in bondage? You observe days and months and
times and years. These are believers being drawn
back under that old covenant, observing certain days. And Paul
says, why are you doing that? These believers are also mainly
being encouraged to find confidence in their circumcision, their
physical circumcision. Let me show you what a strong
influence these believers were under in Galatia. Look at Acts
chapter 15 and verse 1. It says, and certain men which
came down from Judea taught the brethren and said, except you
be circumcised after the manner of Moses, you cannot be saved. Now, these certain men who came
down from Judea were Judaizers. They had grown up under the Mosaic
law. And they weren't saying, don't
look to Christ at all. They were just saying, look,
I know Christ died for you, but you've got to be circumcised.
An uncircumcised man can't be saved. They claim to believe
in Christ, but they wanted to hold on to some aspects of the
Mosaic Law, like the observing of days and circumcision. They were encouraging sinners,
in other words, to find confidence in something other than the cross
of the Lord Jesus Christ. And the apostle tells them that
such confidence is opposed to the liberty that we have in Christ. Look at Galatians 5, verses 1
through 2. Stand fast, therefore, in the
liberty wherewith Christ has made us free, and be not entangled
again with the yoke of bondage. Behold, I, Paul, say unto you
that if you be circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing. If you
be circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing. In other words,
if you're circumcised, thinking that that circumcision somehow
recommends you to God, or somehow you're better off in God's sight
or more in His favor because you got circumcised, Christ is
profit you nothing. You've left grace and gone to
works. The thought here is not just
limited to putting confidence in physical circumcision like
the nation Israel did. Put anything in that place of
circumcision right there. Preachers around the world this
morning are right now telling multitudes that God loves you
and Christ died for you. They say, although this is true,
unless you walk this aisle or pray this prayer, accept Jesus
into your heart, unless you get baptized, unless you worship
on a certain day, unless you do something, though Christ died
for you, you'll perish in your sins. Now how is that different
from, except you be circumcised after the manner of Moses, you
cannot be saved? How is that message any different?
It's not any different. It's the same message that these
preachers, Judaizers, were bringing into the churches of Galatia.
Christ died for you, but no matter, unless you do something, you
won't be saved. Any preaching that has Christ
dying and yet some sinners ending up under the eternal wrath of
God anyway is a preaching that's not telling you to put your confidence
in Christ alone. It's not the cross identified
by the scripture. That cross is not what I told
you was the focal point of the Bible. The cross of the Lord
Jesus Christ accomplished the complete salvation of every sinner
he died for. The cross is where Christ obtained
eternal redemption. Look at Hebrews 9 and verse 12. Neither by the blood of goats
and calves, but by his own blood, Christ entered in once into the
holy place, having obtained eternal redemption." Now, there's a contradiction
in the minds of men right here. A lot of men in this world, they
say, they quote this verse, they say Christ obtained eternal redemption,
and yet they also say that multitudes will perish for whom Christ died.
That's a contradiction, friend. Look on. It's by Christ's sacrifice,
His cross, that He put away sin. He not just obtained eternal
redemption, but He put away sin. Look at Hebrews 9, verses 24
through 26. For Christ is not entered into
the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the
true. He's talking about that old tabernacle and all those
figures that were there. But Christ is entered into heaven
itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us. Nor yet
that Christ should suffer himself often as the high priest entered
into the holy place every year with the blood of others. For
then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world.
But Christ entered in once. Now once in the end of the world
hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. Now, again, there's that contradiction. If you believe Christ put away
sin by the sacrifice of himself, how can you believe that a sinner
he died for can perish? That's a contradiction. Let's
look on. We're talking about the cross
of the Lord Jesus Christ and what Christ obtained there, what
he accomplished there for his people. Christ's resurrection
from the dead is a testimony from God that by his cross Christ
had established the righteousness by which God is just to justify
ungodly sinners. Look at Romans 4 and verse 25.
Now, Romans 4 is all about God telling you that righteousness
was charged to Abraham. And in the end of that chapter
he says, and it's charged to us also, it's imputed to us also,
who believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead.
In other words, who believe in a just God and Savior. And then
verse 25. who was delivered for or because of our offenses and
was raised again because of our justification. This verse is
telling us that Christ was raised from the dead for one reason,
because he had done everything required He met every condition,
fulfilled every requirement for God to be just and justify every
sinner Christ died for. Whether it be Christ's resurrection
from the dead or our spiritual resurrection and regeneration,
which that is a resurrection from the dead, whether it be
Christ's resurrection or ours, There's one requirement for that
resurrection. There's one requirement for life from the dead. That
requirement is righteousness. Now where are you going to find
righteousness? Well, you find it in the God-man. You find it
in the Lord Jesus Christ and his obedience unto death. Christ
was raised because he had established the one righteousness by which
God justifies ungodly sinners. If you think any sinner Christ
died for can perish, in other words, if you think any sinner
Christ died for can ultimately end up under the eternal wrath
of God, then your confidence is not in the cross. It's not
in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ that we're studying about
here. If you don't see Christ's death fulfilling all the law
of God and satisfying all the justice of God for every sinner
he died for, If you don't see Christ's death establishing the
righteousness based upon which God is just to justify sinners,
then your confidence is not in Christ alone. Christ's death
plus any work, any contribution from the sinner, that's not grace,
friends. That's works religion. These
Paul writes to here are being influenced to find some confidence
in the flesh. That's why Paul writes so emphatically
that believers are to find confidence in one place and one place only.
Find confidence in Christ, in Christ alone. Find confidence
in the cross, the specific cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. The
cross being the culmination of Christ's entire work. That's
where the Bible encourages all sinners to find their confidence. Now, look back at Galatians 6.14. God forbid that I should glory
save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ by whom the world
is crucified unto me and I unto the world. What we're going to
look at here in the remainder of this message is three reasons
that Paul gives us here why sinners should find confidence in the
Lord Jesus Christ and in that cross alone. First, find confidence
in the cross. because it's by the cross that
the world has been crucified to someone. Paul said, it's been
crucified unto me, but he's speaking as one among many someones to
whom the world has been crucified. He said the cross of our Lord
Jesus Christ. He's talking about the election
of grace there. See, the cross, Christ didn't go to the cross
for the world as most people think. He went to the cross as
a representative of His particular people. It's our Lord Jesus Christ. Those chosen by God unto salvation. Those justified from old eternity
by Christ's righteousness imputed. Those to whom the Lord will not,
ever, at any time, for any reason, impute sin. Because He imputed
their sin to Christ. And He's imputed Christ's righteousness
to these sinners. Crucified means put to death. The cross of the Lord Jesus Christ
is that by which the world has been put to death to someone. To someone, the world has been
made like a thing that's dead. It has no power. It has no way
to affect their standing with God. The world has always been
crucified to the sinners we're talking about, the some ones,
these that are chosen of God. It always will be crucified,
and it never can be otherwise. In eternity, God determined to
glorify himself in the hearts of a multitude of sinners. In
other words, he determined to reveal the honor of his character
in showing mercy to a multitude of sinners who deserve nothing
but his eternal wrath and judgment. But God determined to show these
sinners mercy. In eternity, Christ assumed the
legal debt of these sinners. He became the substitute and
surety of God's chosen people. Listen to the language of a surety
in the book of Philemon as we look at these verses 18 through
19a. Now, I'll go ahead and read the verse.
Now that's Paul speaking to Philemon concerning a runaway slave named
Onesimus. He's telling Philemon, if he's
wronged you in any way, and he has, he'd run away. He'd stolen
something from Philemon, I think. But he said, if he's wronged
you, or if he owes you anything, put it on my account. Impute
it to me. I, Paul, will repay it." Now,
although that's the language of Paul to Philemon, this is
the language of Christ in an everlasting covenant of grace
where Christ is obligating himself to his father to substitute himself
in the place of his sheep and pay their legal debts to God's
law and justice. He's saying of his sheep, Father,
if these, any one of these has wronged you, if they owe you
anything, impute it to me. Put it on my account. I will
repay it. And he did. When he came to the
cross, he paid that debt in full. The world is crucified to those
that are in Christ. These sinners have an unalterable
standing of justification in Christ from eternity. And that
standing can never be changed. Look at Ephesians 1 in verse
3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who
has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places
in Christ. And then he goes on down through
there and lists all those spiritual blessings. One of those blessings
is a standing of unchangeable justification. The reason that
standing is unalterable, the reason it can't be changed, the
reason it's eternal is because it rests entirely, absolutely,
on the person and work of Christ, and it doesn't rest in any way
to any degree on the doing of sinners. This multitude of sinners
were represented by Adam, just like the whole human race was
represented by Adam. This whole, this race of people
we're talking about, they fell in Adam. And they're born into
this world sinners by nature and by practice. But none of
this changes what they always have been and always will be
in Christ. I like the way Mr. Hupton said
this. He said, the elect fell in Adam. but we didn't fall out of Christ.
We were already in Christ and we didn't fall out of it. We
still have all the benefits and blessings that we had in Christ.
The world has always been crucified to these sinners by the cross
of the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul says, I am one among many
to whom the world has been crucified by Christ. So the first reason
we're to put our confidence in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ
is because by that cross the world has been crucified to me. Look back at Galatians 6.14.
We'll look at the next reason. But God forbid that I should
glory, saving the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the
world is crucified unto me. And you see what I underlined,
and I unto the world. Not only is the world crucified
unto me, but I am crucified unto the world. That's the second reason why
every individual sinner, especially those hearing this message, should
find their confidence in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ
alone. Because by that cross, I've been crucified to the world.
It's by the cross that I've been put to death to the world. by
the cross that I've been made as a dead thing to the world.
Now this has to do with the sinner's understanding of and of value
for the work of Christ for those he was given. It necessarily
presupposes a lack of this understanding. In other words, before I came
to the gospel, I didn't know the cross I should have been
putting my confidence in. I never heard of Him until I
heard the gospel and the righteousness of God revealed. Now, I made
a distinction between these first two points. The world is crucified
to someone, then that someone is crucified to the world. Let
me clarify that just a little bit. When one chosen by God in
Christ from eternity is born into this world, they already
have an unchangeable standing of justification based on Christ's
imputed righteousness alone. That standing is unalterably
fixed in the doing and dying of Christ. The world is already
crucified to them. Nothing in the world can change
their standing in Christ. It's fixed. But these sinners
are not yet crucified to the world. These sinners are alienated
and enemies in their mind by wicked works. They are dead in
trespasses and sins. They are by nature the children
of wrath, even as others. They are committing sin. They
are the servants of sin, a sin that has them deceived. And that's
all scriptural language concerning all of us by nature, but it includes
the elect of God. These sinners are not crucified
into the world until their minds are changed, until they are circumcised
in the heart, until they are made new creatures. Look back
at Galatians 6 and verse 15. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision
availeth anything nor uncircumcision, but a new creature, a new creation. These sinners are not crucified
to the world until they are made to put their confidence in Christ
and Christ alone, until they are delivered from putting their
confidence in the flesh. Look at Philippians 3. This is
a good definition, a good biblical definition of a true believer
right here. Philippians 3 and verse 3. Paul says, For we are
the circumcision, which worship God in the Spirit, and rejoice
in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. Paul
is calling true believers here the circumcision. And that word
interpreted rejoice as the same word that we have in our text
in Galatians that's interpreted glory. It means to boast. It
means to have confidence in. Paul wrote to Timothy that he
was a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life
everlasting. In Philippians 3, Paul is describing
his change of mind that delivered him from finding confidence in
the flesh to finding confidence in Christ alone. Now, remember
our context in Galatians. That's the same kind of influence
these Galatians were under. They were being persuaded to
find confidence, not in Christ alone, but in the flesh somehow. And that's the same influence
we're all under by nature. Christ died for you, but you've
got to do something. And if you don't, you'll perish.
Everybody is finding confidence in Christ alone or they're finding
confidence in the flesh, which is anything except Christ alone.
Now let's look at Paul. Paul's, uh, he said he was a
pattern here and what he's a pattern of here in Philippians three
is a pattern of repentance, a pattern of going from confidence in the
flesh to confidence in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. Look
at Philippians three verses four through six. Now this is right
after that verse that we read back up there, that we are the
circumcision who rejoice in Christ, who worship God in the spirit,
rejoice in Christ, and have no confidence in the flesh. Paul
says, though I might also have confidence in the flesh, if any
other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the
flesh, I more. Paul said, if anybody in the
world ought to have confidence in the flesh, it should be me.
And then he lists the things that he had confidence in before
God delivered him. Verse 5, circumcised the eighth
day of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, and Hebrew
of the Hebrews, as touching the law of Pharisee, concerning zeal,
persecuting the church, touching the righteousness which is in
the law, blameless. In other words, Paul says, I
had every right, if there's any confidence to be had in the flesh,
I had every right to have confidence in the flesh. And I did until
God brought me to the gospel. Look at Philippians 3 and verse
7. But what things were gained to
me? Those I counted lost for Christ. See, all those things he listed
are things that he was counting on has contributed toward some
part of his righteous standing before God. He said, but all
those things that I counted gain, I now count loss for Christ.
Here's The changed mind. Paul was finding confidence in
those things until God stopped him and brought him to Christ.
Look on at Philippians 3 verses 8 and 9. He said, Yea, doubtless,
and I count all things but lost for the excellency of the knowledge
of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I've suffered the loss of
all things and do count them but done, that I may win Christ
and be found in him. not having mine own righteousness
which is of the law, but that which is through the faith or
faithfulness of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith." This contrast, this is a contrast
between sinners, a sinner, Paul is listing himself here. This
is a contrast between him finding confidence in the flesh, in his
heritage and his law keeping and all that religious zeal he
had. And the contrast is in finding confidence in Christ alone. And
this contrast between sinners. Finding confidence in Christ
alone and finding confidence in the flesh, it goes all the
way back to Cain and Abel. Abel found confidence in the
promised seed, the one that was pictured and typified by that
slain lamb he brought. Cain, of course, found confidence
In his own works, he found confidence in the work of his hands. Cain's
way is the way that we all, without exception, start out. Now, we'd
like to put ourselves with Abel, but that's not us by nature.
We have to be delivered to be with Abel. We're like Cain by
nature. Our confidence is not in Christ
alone. Paul said he was a pattern. We don't have the same list Paul
had. I wasn't a Hebrew of Hebrews
or I wasn't touching the law. I wasn't under the Mosaic law
and zealous like Paul was. But we have a list. You have
a list. I have a list. I had things I
was putting confidence in before God brought me to Christ. I had
confidence that I had accepted Jesus as my personal Savior.
I had confidence in my religious zeal. I had confidence in the
fact that I believe Christ died for me. Or we could have had
confidence in our repentance or in our reformation or in going
to church on Saturday, but we had confidence in something. We didn't have confidence in
Christ alone, not by nature. The standing of those in Christ
is fixed. It can't be altered. They are
eternally and forever justified by the work, the cross of Christ
alone. But our walk, our walk in this
world, it has to be changed. We must be delivered from finding
confidence in the flesh. We must be delivered from finding
confidence in something other than the cross of our Lord Jesus
Christ. Paul writes of his deliverance.
Look at Galatians 2 and verse 20. He said, I am crucified with
Christ. Nevertheless, I live. Yet not
I, but Christ liveth in me. And the life which I now live
in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me
and gave himself for me. I do not frustrate the grace
of God, for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ
is dead in vain. The life which I now live, Paul
said. You see, before, he was frustrating
the grace of God when he thought and had confidence that his standing
with God had something to do with his religious zeal, with
his law-keeping. He was frustrating the grace
of God. But he says now, if righteousness
comes that way, Christ is dead in vain. This is Paul after regeneration. It's Paul after his mind was
changed, after he was delivered from finding confidence in the
flesh. It's this change that gives evidence that we've experienced
the new birth. It's this change that gives evidence
that we've been made new creatures, that new creation in Christ.
It's this new birth, this new heart, which finds its confidence
in Christ alone that evidences that I have now. not before,
but now, been crucified to the world. Find confidence in the
cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom you have now been crucified
to the world. All right, that's two reasons.
Let me give you the last one. The third reason why we are to
find confidence in the cross of Christ alone, because those
who do Those who do are those in this world who give evidence
that they're at peace with God. They're those who have found
the mercy of God. They're those who are the true
spiritual Israel of God. Look at Galatians 6 and verse
16 again. He says, and as many as walk
according to this rule, peace be on them and mercy, and upon
the Israel of God. As many as walk according to
this rule. This rule has two parts. These
parts are what we just looked at in the scripture. It's a sinner
finding all of his or her confidence before God in the doing and dying
of Christ alone. In other words, seeing that Christ
has crucified the world to someone by his work alone. It's also
being delivered from finding confidence in anything else.
In other words, it's also you being crucified to the world.
Now, you're not doing one of these without the other. You're
not putting your confidence in Christ unless you've been delivered
from finding confidence in something else. If you're now finding confidence
in Christ alone, it's because you've been delivered from finding
confidence somewhere else, based on something else. It's not a
sinner standing before God that changes, but it's the walk that
changes. Look at Ephesians 2 and verse
1. Paul writes to the Ephesians, wherein in time past you walked
according to the course of this world, according to the prince
of the power of the air, the spirit that now works in the
children of disobedience. Here he's talking about before
regeneration and conversion. In our text, he's writing about
after regeneration and conversion. As many as now walk according
to this rule, peace be on them. Look at Psalm 64 in verse 10. The psalmist writes, the righteous
shall be glad in the Lord and shall trust in him and all the
upright in heart shall glory. The righteous are those particular
sinners who've always been righteous by virtue of Christ's righteousness
imputed all the way back to eternity. They are those particular sinners
to whom the world has always been crucified by the doing and
dying of Christ alone. The upright in heart are those
same always righteous sinners after they've been given a new
heart in regeneration. They will glory. In other words,
they will boast in Christ. They will find confidence in
Christ alone. Whereas before, before their
new heart and before God given faith, they found confidence
in something else, but they won't be left there. These centers
were always righteous, but they were not always upright in heart.
They were always righteous, but there were not always glad in
the Lord, not the Lord of the scriptures. They were always
righteous, but they didn't always trust in Christ and Christ alone. But they will. They will because
Christ has bought them faith. And in time, in each generation,
they'll be given faith and they'll find the peace with God wrought
for them by Christ and in Christ. Look at Romans 5 and verse 1.
Therefore being justified, well, let me Let me do this a little
different. There's a comma after faith,
you see it? It should be after justified, because the last verse
in Romans 4.25 that we read earlier, who was raised, who was delivered
because of our offenses, raised again because of our justification,
therefore being justified, comma, by faith we have or we're having
peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. It's by God-given
faith that I now have peace with God. That peace is not one that
I obtained by my effort or by my contribution. It's the peace
that Christ obtained by his obedience unto death. This is the peace
that sinners enter into by God-given faith. All right, let me summarize
quickly what I've said. Put all your confidence before
God in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Be delivered from
putting any confidence anywhere else because those who do these
things give evidence that they are at peace with God. They give
evidence that they found the mercy of God. They give evidence
that they are the spiritual Israel of God. Confidence in the cross
of our Lord Jesus Christ. I would pray that the Lord would
bring you and me, all his people, to this conference.