Baptists Believe in the Triune God

Turn if you would to Deuteronomy chapter six to begin with. We're going to be floating around a little bit this morning. Got a lot of verses to look up look at on the screen today. What we're we're studying this morning, what the message is on is a trinity. It's a little more academic in nature in some ways but as we get to know our God better and our faith grows and our understanding in the scripture, our relationship with him should grow as well and our confidence in the God that we serve.

As we looked at last week Baptists believe in the what? Yes, Trinity last week the what? The Bible. Last week we learned we believe and I hope you already knew. Okay?

We believe in the Bible. Why? Because the Bible is the word of who? It's the word of God. It's God's revelation to us.

It is not a mere collection of religious writings. It is not the opinions of man. It is as it says it is the inspired word of God. It carries the authority of God behind it. It is represents his nature.

It is infallible as he is infallible. It is trustworthy as he is trustworthy because it is the word of God and therefore, our faith is based upon the doctrine taught therein. As the early church continued in the doctrine of the what? Of the apostles. That is reflected and completed in the word of God that you hold in front of you there this morning.

Praise God. He has not left us without direction. He has given to us his word. You can know God because he reveals himself in the word that he has given to us. There are those out there today that call themselves agnostics.

What that means is they don't believe you can know God. But they are wrong. And they are missing out. Because God gave us his word for that very reason that we might know him. That we might be joined in fellowship and a relationship to him.

He is not a god who is watching us from a distance and who does not care or is uninvolved in our lives or in this world. He is very much involved and he very much cares. So much he sent his son to die for us. We believe the word of God. It is that upon which we stand and we do it without shame.

We do it without doubt and we will not back down from it. There are many who call themselves Christians today who have cast dispersions upon the very word of God that they claim is the basis for their faith. How you can do that? I don't know. It is a contradiction in their words.

One of the things that the Bible teaches us clearly is this, God is a triune God. He is a trinity. A Godhead of three, Father, Son and holy ghost or holy spirit. Again, we unashamedly proclaim and declare what the word of God teaches today that our God is how the word of God describes him and I want to take a few minutes to look into the word of God today and to look through several verses that declare who he is and see how the word of God clearly demonstrates that we serve a triune God. Matthew four ten says, Jesus said, thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and him only shalt thou serve.

Satan asked Jesus to bow down before him and Satan said, I'll give you all the kings. I'll give it to you right now. If you'll just do what? Bow down and worship me and Jesus said, thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and him only shalt thou serve. There's only one, Lord thy God and we must worship and bow before him.

Let's go to the Lord in prayer. We'll continue. Lord, thank you for your word today. Thank you Lord for what it teaches. May you help us Lord to piece this together from your words so that we might be confident in our faith and grow in our understanding and in our ability to communicate the God of the scripture and that you are a triune God, father, son, and holy spirit.

One and yet three. Lord, draw us closer to you and help us Lord to exalt our God and our savior Jesus Christ today. In Jesus name, we pray. Amen. So, the Bible tells us there's one and only one God who is to be worshiped and adored, believed, and submitted to his God.

Yet, there are three to which the description of God can be applied equally particularly in the New Testament but also we will see in the Old Testament as well. To reject the trinity is to reject the doctrine of the word of God and the God of the word and how can we be saved if we reject the God of scripture? Jesus Jesus communicated to those that he preached and taught when he was here particular in the book of John that if you reject the son, you've also rejected who? You've rejected the father. So, how can we know God and yet reject who he is?

We need to accept who he is. We need to proclaim who he is. We need to stand firmly on our faith and know why we believe that our God is a triune God. Are there people out there today who call themselves Christians who do not believe in the trinity? Yes, there are.

There are. Mormons, Jehovah's Witness, and many others. French groups that do not believe in the trinity. Is that a problem? Yes, it is because the God of the Bible is a triune God.

Let's let's start out again with the scriptures in reference to first of all, the teaching that there is only one. There is only one God. Does the scripture clearly teach that there is only one God? Oh, yes. Yes, it does.

If you have your Bibles open to Deuteronomy chapter six, four, and five, you can read it from there or look on the screen. It says, here oh Israel, the Lord, our God is one Lord. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy might. How many gods are there? There's one.

He is the Lord. Capital. You see Lord in all capital letters there. That represents the name Jehovah or Yahweh. We're not exactly how sure to pronounce it because in the original Hebrew, there were no vowels, just consonants.

And the Israelites for fear of pronouncing it wrong, stop pronouncing it at all. So, in the English translations, in most, you will see it represented in all capitals Lord or in some cases when it's Adonai which means master or Lord followed by Jehovah. It will be all capitals God, okay? So, whenever you see God or Lord in all capitals, that is the name of the one God and that is Jehovah, the God of Israel and he is also our God as well and there is only one, only one. First Corinthians eight four, as concerning therefore the eating of those things that are offered and sacrificed unto idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world and that there is none other god but one.

But one, okay? Not two, not three. Satan is not a god by the way. He is a created being who rebelled against his creator. He is not a god.

You are not a god. You are a human being. You are a creation. Created to serve, to fellowship, and to love your creator who is the only what? The only God.

James two nineteen James two nineteen says, thou believeest that there is one God, thou doest well. The devils also believe and tremble. Now, we'll get to this in a minute. It isn't just enough to say you believe in one God because there's a lot of people out there that say they believe in one God but it isn't necessarily the true and living God, okay? But James says, even the devils believe there is a what?

There is a god. They know there is a god. They know there's just what? They know there's just one God. That's not enough.

There needs to be more. You must put your faith and trust in that one God and his son, Jesus Christ to save you from your sins. Malachi two ten, have we not all one father, hath not one God created us all? Those are rhetorical questions. The answer to that is yes.

There is only one God who created us all. He is the true and the living God. All others are phonies. All others are fakes. All others are false.

All others are the creation of the mind of man in the hands of men. They are not truly gods. They are false. They are powerless. They are not real.

There's only one God. Jeremiah ten ten says, but the Lord is the true God. Notice Lord is in all what? Capitals. Jehovah is the true God, okay?

Not whatever anybody else may say. Jehovah, however you pronounce his name, he is the true God. He is the living God and a everlasting king. At his wrath, the earth shall tremble and the nation shall not be able to abide his indignation. He is a god of love.

He's also a god of justice and judgement by the way and one day, the Bible says, every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God, the father. Catch that. There's only one God we're to what? Bow before and the Bible says that one day, every knee will bow before who? Jesus Christ.

Is he God? We'll come back to that in a minute. Number two, not only does the Bible clearly demonstrate and communicate there is only one God. He refers to himself in the Old Testament on occasion using plural pronouns. This one God sometimes refers to himself using plural pronouns.

This is interesting. Genesis one twenty six and God said, let us, let what? Who us make man in our image and after our likeness. In the next verse it says, and he made God. He made man, created man.

Okay? It uses plural in this verse. It uses singular in the next verse. Isn't that interesting? Okay?

One God here refers to himself using a what? A plural pronoun. Same thing in Genesis three twenty two and the Lord God said, behold the man has become as one of us to know good and evil. Notice the end of the second line there is us. Okay?

Look if you would Genesis eleven six and seven. The Lord said, let us go down and there confound their language that they may not understand one another's speech. This is at the Tower Of Babel. Again, God says, speaking seemingly to himself, let us go down. Isaiah six:eight, and I heard the voice of the Lord, the Lord speaking saying, whom shall I send and who will go for us.

Us. Four verses in the Old Testament clearly where God uses a uses plural pronouns to refer to himself. Bible is clear there's only what? One God. This God sometimes refers to himself using plural pronouns.

Isn't that interesting? Number three, he appears in the Old Testament as more than one person or by different names, okay? In Genesis 18, the Lord appeared to Abraham in the form of a man though it does not indicate which person of the trinity. God, Abraham speaks, converses back and forth with God, with the Lord, all capitals there. In in Isaiah sixty three sixteen, it refers to God as father, doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us and Israel acknowledges not thou, oh Lord, Jehovah art our father, our redeemer, thy name is from everlasting.

We often refer to God and particularly in the New Testament, Christ referred to God the father many, many, many, many, many times. He is called the father and Jesus Christ, the son, while was on Earth, prayed and communicated with the father who was where? In in heaven, okay? He is described as the angel of the Lord. Take your Bibles if you would turn back to Genesis chapter 16.

Genesis chapter 16. Not gonna have you turn to many this morning but this one was just a little too long to put on the screen. In one in one slide. So, Genesis 16, the angel of the Lord. By the way, the angel, the word angel in Hebrew and the word angel in Greek both mean messenger.

When you see angel, think messenger. So, here in Genesis 16, Exodus three and in several other passages in the Old Testament, we have someone who is called the messenger or the angel of the Lord. Now, there's a few places where it refers to a messenger from the Lord who is clearly a created being and servant Like when you get to the New Testament, the angel Gabriel came and spoke to Mary, okay? But in these passages, this person who is called the angel of the Lord or the messenger of Jehovah also seems to be the Lord. Okay, look if you would in Genesis 16 and we'll begin in verse verse 10.

Genesis 16 verse 10. Hagar has fled from Sarah and Abraham has essentially been kicked out and she is in dire straits without food and water in the desert. She's afraid her son is going to die. If you look in verse 10, the angel of the Lord said unto her, I will multiply thy seed exceedingly that it should not that it shall not be numbered for multitude and the angel of the Lord said unto her, behold, thou art with child and shall bear a son, shall call his name Ishmael because the Lord hath heard thy affliction and he will be a wild man. His hand will be against every man, every man's hand against him and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren and she called the name of the Lord that spake unto her.

Thou God seest me. For she said, I have I also here looked after or upon him that seeth me. What she is expressing here, it is her belief that the person she was talking to that she actually had laid eyes on was who? Was God himself. And she firmly believed that as is taught was taught particularly in the Old Testament to the Jews that for any man to see God, no man could see God and what?

And live but yet she saw God. She firmly believed that the one she was talking to was God himself. As Abraham in Genesis 18 had literally stood face to face with God in human form and carried on a conversation with him. Now there are several of these passages. We'll look at one more.

Turn if you would just over to Exodus chapter three. Exodus chapter three. Exodus chapter three and look in verse two. This is Moses. Moses is on Mount Horeb or also called Mount Sinai.

There, he sees a burning bush and he approaches the burning bush because he's been watching it for a while from a distance and it's been burning and burning and burning but hasn't burned up and so he said this is kind of strange. I'm gonna go see what's going on. Of course, God was trying to get Moses attention. Verse two, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him, unto Moses in a flame of fire out of the midst of the bush and he looked and behold the bush burned with fire. The bush was not consumed.

Moses said I will I will now turn aside and see this great sight. Why the bush is not burnt? When the Lord saw that he turned aside God called unto him out of the midst of the what? The midst of the bush and said, Moses, Moses and he said, here am I and he said, draw not nigh or near any further hither but put off thy shoes from off thy feet for the place where on thou standest is holy ground. Moreover, he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob, and Moses hid his face for he's afraid to look upon God.

Who was it that was in the bush who was speaking out of the bush? God, Jehovah, the Lord. But he is first described here in verse two as the what? As the angel or the messenger of the Lord. Now, I believe personally that this is a pre incarnate appearance of who?

Of Jesus Christ. In these times when we see the angel Lord in the Old Testament who is clearly identified as equal with Jehovah who is Jehovah that this is uniquely the person of Jesus Christ, a pre incarnate appearance of the son of God. But what is clear is there is this person who is identified as the angel of the Lord who appears several times in the Old Testament who is God. Even though he he is also given this title. A god is referred to also in the Old Testament by the name the spirit of God.

We see this in Genesis one two and the spirit of God moved over the face of the waters. All of the were involved in creation, the father, the son, as we'll see in a minute and the Holy Spirit. In first Samuel ten ten, if you look up here, first Samuel ten ten and when they came hither to the hill, behold a company of prophets met him and the spirit of God came upon him and he prophesied among them. Well, some might say, well, that just means God's spirit is in God's you know, power came upon him but it seems to be more. It seems to be that the spirit of God is actually identified as a a person separate from the father and the son in the old the Old Testament who would come upon people in power to to prophesy and to to speak the word of God and to do miraculous things like Samson in his name.

Isaiah forty eight sixteen. Come you near unto me, hear you this, I have not spoken in secret from the beginning, from the time that it was, there am I, and now the Lord, God, notice God's own capitals as Jehovah and his what? Spirit. Has sent me. Seems to identify two different what?

Two different personalities, individuals here. God and his what? And his spirit, okay? Same spirit by the way mentioned in second Peter one twenty one. We'll get back to that in a minute where it says, for the prophecy came not in old time by the will of men but holy men of God spake as they were moved specifically by who?

By the holy holy spirit. How about the son? How about Jesus Christ? As he mentioned in the Old Testament, well, how about Psalm one hundred ten one? The Lord said unto my Lord, sit at, sit thou at my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool.

David said, the Lord, Jehovah said to my Lord, to David's Lord. Who is David's Lord? He's king. Who's his Lord? Jesus Christ.

He's his Lord and in Acts chapter two, Peter, when he preached, declared that the my Lord in this verse is Jesus Christ. The son of God who is greater than David and equal with who? And equal with the father. How about Psalm two? If you want to take your Bibles, turn to Psalm two.

Psalm two if you would. Look in verse seven. Psalm two beginning in verse seven. Psalm two verse seven. God says, I will declare the decree the Lord has said unto me, thou art my what?

Son, this day have I begotten. Thee, ask of me, I shall give thee the hidden for thine inheritance, the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possessions. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron. Thou shalt dust them in pieces like a potter's vessel. Be wise now.

Therefore, oh you kings, be instructed, you judges the earth, serve the Lord with fear, rejoice with trembling, kiss the son, lest he be angry, and you perish from the way when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in thee. Where who is it mentioned there? The son and the son is to be worshiped and adored just as the father because he is also the Lord. Okay.

Isaiah nine six, for unto us a son is born unto us, unto us a child is born unto us a son is given and his name shall be called wonderful counselor, the what? The mighty God. The everlasting father, the prince of peace. Who is that verse talking about? Jesus Christ and it calls him the mighty God and the what?

The everlasting father. So, does the Old Testament reveal that there is father, son, holy spirit? I believe so. I believe we even see him in the person of the angel, the Lord several times. But now, let's move to the New Testament.

In the New Testament, we three we see three distinct persons all referred to in the New Testament as participants in the plan of redemption. Equally divine. Let's look at a few verses this morning. First Peter one two. Elect, talking about those who are saved according to the foreknowledge of God the father, through the sanctification of the spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ, grace unto you and peace be multiplied.

There we have father, spirit, and who? Jesus Christ, the son, all mentioned in the same verse, All involved and participants in God's plan of redemption for you. All seemingly equal. Yet, working in different aspects. The salvation of mankind.

How about Jesus birth or his conception? Luke one thirty five, the angel answered and said unto her, said unto Mary, the holy ghost shall come upon thee, the power of the highest shall overshadow thee. Therefore, also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the son of God. We have the highest, we might assume to be the father, we have the Holy Spirit who conceived in her. The person of Jesus Christ the son.

Okay? All three again mentioned. In the incarnation of Jesus Christ. That doesn't mean he began. That means he left heaven as we're told in John one and he came to Earth and he became a man.

Still fully God but also fully man. At the baptism of Jesus, let's look at this, the baptism of Jesus, Matthew three sixteen and seventeen. Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water and low the heavens were open unto him and he saw the spirit of God descending like a dove lighting upon him and low a voice from heaven saying, this is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased. There we have Jesus Christ the son being baptized. We have the holy spirit descending from heaven in the form visual form of a dove and we have somebody who do you think that is from heaven speaking?

The father, the father from heaven saying, this is my beloved son and whom I am well pleased. Again, father, son, and holy ghost. We read a moment ago, the great commission, go you therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the father, of the son, of the holy ghost. It seem to be equated all here as equals, don't they not? Yes.

If the father's divine, well then so must the son be. The son is divine and so must the holy spirit be. They're all involved in our redemption. They're all involved in our salvation. They are all God.

Three but yet, three but yet one. In John fourteen twenty six, It says, but the comforter which is the Holy Ghost, whom the father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things and bring all things to remembrance, whatsoever I've said unto you. This is Jesus, the son speaking of the day when he will return to the father and the father will send who? The Holy Ghost and he said, it is to his disciples. He said, it's expedient.

It's beneficial for you that I, the son of God, go back to heaven that he might send the spirit of God to dwell inside of you. He said, it's better. Well, how was that? How could that be better if the Holy Spirit is not who? It's not God but Holy Spirit is God.

And Holy Spirit isn't just with us, he is where? In us. So, that's beneficial for us, is it not? Indeed, it is. Second Corinthians thirteen fourteen.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the communion of the holy ghost be with you all. Amen. Again and again, we have references to the trinity in the New Testament, the father, the son, and the holy spirit and they seem to all be equal and they seem to all be divine. One, yet what? Three, we call that the trinity.

Christ clearly identifies himself as equal with God while also identifying himself as being distinct from God. As he is on Earth, Jesus over and over again declared himself to be God as John declares here. In the beginning was the word, that's Jesus, the word was with God and the word what? Was God. Now that doesn't in the Greek say was a God.

It doesn't say he was like God. It clearly in the Greek says he was God. Theos. Period, end of statement. He is not like God or sort of a god or another god.

He is God, okay? He was with God. He was and is and forever will be God. All things were made by him and without him was not anything made that was made. Clearly, God created the world, did he not?

In the beginning, God, what? Created the heavens and the earth But this verse tells me that all things were made by who? Who? Jesus. That makes Jesus who?

That makes Jesus clearly God. John five eighteen. Jesus said unto them, verily verily I say unto you before Abraham was, I am. Before Abraham was eight fifty eight I mean. Before Abraham was I am.

Now what did Jesus mean there? Well when he said I am he's referring back to Exodus chapter three where God appeared to Moses in the burning bush and says my name is I am. I am the self existent one. I am the almighty God. I am Jehovah.

Jesus is declaring that's who he is and so the people staying around that didn't believe that, they immediately picked up stones to stone him because they understood that he was declaring that he is who? That he is God. John five eighteen expresses that. It says, therefore, the Jews sought the more to kill him because he not only had broken the Sabbath but said also that God was his father making himself what? Equal with God.

Clearly, that's what Jesus was doing. Everybody knew that. Question was not, was he making himself with God. Question was, did they believe it? Would they accept it or not?

That Jesus is divine. In John ten thirty, Jesus said, I and my father are one. One. In John fourteen nine, Jesus said, have I been with you so long? And yet hast thou not known me, Philip?

He that hast seen me has seen who? The father. How sayest then show us the father, Peter? Philip, don't you understand if you've seen me, you've seen the father because we are what? Titus two thirteen.

Our study in Titus with the men's group. We looked at this verse looking for that blessed hope and glorious appearing of the great God and our savior Jesus Christ. Now, in Greek, very clearly in Greek, he's not saying the great God and this other person, our savior Jesus Christ. Clearly in Greek, he is saying the great God and savior Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is what?

The great God and our savior. He is our God and he is our savior. He is not less than God. He is equal with God. He is God in very nature.

Romans nine five. Romans nine five, whose are the fathers and of whom is concerning the flesh Christ came, who is overall God blessed forever, amen. Who is Jesus? He is God blessed forever, amen. You believe scriptures, you must believe Jesus is God.

John twenty twenty eight, Thomas recognized that finally and Jesus accepted his declaration. Thomas said, and answered and said unto him, my Lord and my what? My Lord and my God. And as we mentioned earlier the Holy Spirit is identified clearly as God. In Second Timothy three sixteen it says, For all scriptures given by inspiration of who?

God. And in second Peter one and twenty, we read that holy men of God spake as they were moved by who? By the holy ghost or the holy spirit. So, if the Bible is inspired by God, if it's given by God, if it's God's words and the holy spirit is the one who who led the people to write down the words then the holy spirit must be who? Holy spirit must be God, okay?

Not less than God. Not some impersonal force but equal and yet distinct. Although the scriptures do not use the word trinity they clearly teach beginning in the Old Testament. There's one sovereign God who only is to be worshiped but in the New Testament that there are clearly three co equal persons who are worthy of the title and worship and service. Thus the bible assumes and reveals to us God as a trinity.

No it does not use that word. That is what it clearly is what it clearly teaches. You say but pastor I have a hard time understanding how one can be three and three can be one. Well, Bible says that God's ways are higher than our ways and our point of reference in humans is humans is a little bit what? A little bit lacking.

And just because we can't fully comprehend the nature of God doesn't believe that we doesn't mean we can't believe what he says. And I dare say there are things that we believe that are one and yet three. I could have brought an egg up here with me this morning. I could have brought one egg. I could have cracked it open.

I could have separated the shell from the yolk from the white. I'd have still only had what? One egg. But the yolk is egg, the white is egg, the shell is egg. They're distinct but they're yet what?

They're yet one. I could have brought an apple pie up here this morning. I could have cut it in three equal pieces. I could have handed out to three different persons this morning and I could each of you have what? Apple pie.

But yet how many apple pies did I bring? One. One. I could have held up to you this morning this cube. You see this cube here?

Cube. Cube is mentioned by the way in the Old Testament. The Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle was a perfect cube 15 feet by 15 feet by 15 feet or maybe it's 15 cubits by 15 cubits by 15 cubits. Anyway it was a perfect cube. In Revelation we're told that the New Jerusalem will be likewise perfect cube.

The city lieth four square. The links is as large as the breath. He measured the city with the reed twelve, zero furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height are all what? Are all what?

Equal. Okay? One cube. Three measurements. The length, the breadth, and the what?

The height. All equal. Turn it whatever way you want to turn it to look at it. One cube but three equal dimensions. Now, does that fully explain the trinity?

Absolutely not. But maybe it will help us to grasp a little bit. We do believe in things that are one and yet what? And yet three. Our God is one God yet he is declared to be three distinct person.

It is not vital that you completely comprehend it. What is vital is that you believe it and you believe the word of God. That the Jesus Christ who came to die on your cross on the cross for your sins is God. God the son. That the Holy Spirit that indwells you is God.

God the Holy Spirit and the father that awaits you in heaven is God. God the father, who sent his son to die for you. Any other gospel is another gospel. Paul said in Galatians one eight, but though we are an angel from heaven preach any other gospel unto you, then that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. And Paul preached the trinity.

First John four, two, and three, it says, hereby, know you the spirit of God, every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God. Every spirit that confesses not that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God and this is the spirit of the antichrist wherever you have heard that it should come even now already is it in the world. What does it say? Well, person that comes and tells you that Jesus Christ hasn't come, they didn't come in the flesh or that he isn't the son of God or God the son is telling you a lie. The Bible is clear when it comes to who Jesus Christ is.

The Bible is clear when it comes to who God is. The God that made us. The triune God and in Romans ten nine, it says, that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus that Jesus is is what? Lord. And God.

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth Lord Jesus shall believe in thine heart that God has raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. This is the Jesus who died for you on the cross. He is not less than God. He is not a hybrid God. He is not another god.

He is the very what? The very same God who made us. And he is the very same God who will judge us. Praise God. He is the same God who died for us on the cross and will redeem all who come to him by faith.

Have you done that? I pray and hope that you have. If you haven't, you can today. If you'll come as we sing a hymn of invitation in just a moment. Let's pray.

Dear Lord, thank you for your word. Thank you Lord that we can be confident in that which we preach and teach and tell others. That Jesus Christ is the son of God. He is God the son. Second person of the Godhead.

The trinity. That our God is a triune God. Our God is a holy God. Our God is a faithful God. Our God is a loving God.

Our God is a saving God. Father, son, and holy ghost altogether taking part in the redemption of mankind and I pray Lord that if there be any here today that is yet to receive that redemption that you offer, that gift of eternal life. I pray that they would come to receive you today. In Jesus name, we do pray.