0 (16s): don't let your job. your eyes on God is madly in love with you. 0 (1m 2s): Courage. Hold on. 0 (1m 7s): 1 (9m 50s): Whenever you're going through today, Join in this moment. We are here to worship Jesus. We set everything else aside. You need to lift your hands, lift your hands. You need to go on your knees, going to turn the patio of your home. Wherever you find yourself. Right now, you put Jesus first We worship you. 1 (14m 33s):...
0 (16s): don't let your job. your eyes on God is madly in love with you. 0 (1m 2s): Courage. Hold on. 0 (1m 7s): 1 (9m 50s): Whenever you're going through today, Join in this moment. We are here to worship Jesus. We set everything else aside. You need to lift your hands, lift your hands. You need to go on your knees, going to turn the patio of your home. Wherever you find yourself. Right now, you put Jesus first We worship you. 1 (14m 33s): Jesus. We thank you. How do we get to be here? Lift your name. Hi, 2 (14m 38s): Hallelujah. Or we are grateful, grateful for the victory. Lord, do you made a way for us finished work on Calvary makes it possible for AF for us to have access for us, to enjoy your presence, to worship you in spirit and in truth, Lord God, your life crucifixion, your death. Your resurrection makes victory possible for us and not just possible, but the outcome for our lives as we trust you and follow you, Lord God. 2 (15m 22s): So we thank you, Lord. I pray that we would connect with that and believe that Lord and walk in that truth. God, thank you for what you're doing. Lord God, as we open up your word today, and as we take communion, and as we baptize people, as we continue to pray and praise and fellowship, Lord, I just want you to be glorified. We want you to be glorified, Lord God, and a breakthrough into areas of our life. God, where we're dealing with fear or anxiety, doubts, anger, disbelief, unbelief, whatever it is, Lord God that we would allow a breakthrough in our lives. Lord God, that we would usher in a breakthrough by faith. 2 (16m 2s): As the gracious presence of the living, God will fill us and minister to us Lord. So we're where we've been holding you back. Lord, keeping you out. Lord, I pray that we would open up and allow you in Jesus name, that we would open up and allow your grace. Allow your love. Allow your goodness Lord to permeate every part of us. Lord God, to just blanket us. Lord. Thank you, Lord. You've done so much for us already and you continue to minister to us. 2 (16m 47s): You've seated. You've been seated at the right hand of God because your atoning work is complete, but you continue to minister you. You are our mediator. You are the one who makes all things possible. New life possible forgiveness possible. Grace possible. Thank you Lord. They give you thank you that you are a good priest, a good high priest. God, we worship you. You are a prophet priest and king. You are God incarnate the creator and sustainer of all things. 2 (17m 30s): You are Jehovah Gyra, our provider. You are our banner, our Lord. We surrendered submits you in all things. Lord, be glorified in Jesus name. Amen. Amen. You may be seated. Thank you, sir. We're in Hebrews chapter eight today. Thanks Barry. Hebrews chapter eight. Go ahead and turn. There. We'll have stuff up on the screen as well, but a Hebrews chapter eight and then we we'll be taking communion at the end and we'll be baptizing people at the end if you've never been baptized, man, if you're a, if you are a follower of the Lord, Jesus Christ, it is time to get, don't do this time to go into the waters of baptism. 2 (18m 17s): And so if you want to get kind of spontaneous, when I think of spontaneous baptism, I think about spontaneous combustion and it just kind of there's something I don't know. But if you would like to get spontaneously baptized today, we've got shorts and t-shirts and all kinds of stuff available to you. If you'd like to get dunked and I promise you will not combust. You will not spontaneously combust, but Hey, the title of the message today is Jesus completed his work and he continues his work. Doesn't that feel like life like we continue. We complete something and then we have still more work to do. It feels like that's kind of our been our motto for 19 years at harvest church, we complete a project. 2 (19m 0s): Then we move on to the next project because there's always work to be done. We're going to see in Hebrews chapter eight, that Jesus actually, he completed his work, but then he continues the work. Maybe it's like us with salvation. The work of salvation is complete in us, but God's called us to continue to press on and do the work that he has called us to do called us and equipped us to do so. The finished work of redemption has taken place, but then God calls us to move forward in the work that he's called us in equipped us for. So whatever's going on in your life? God's got, he's got redemptive work for you to partner participate in. And I just invite you into that. 2 (19m 41s): It's not always easy. In fact, most of the time, it's, it's not easy at all. It's, it's a challenge. It's difficult and it comes with all kinds of hurdles, but it is so worth it when we press in and press on and allow God to do what he wants to do. So Jesus completed his work and he continues his work Hebrews chapter eight. We're going to continue to talk about the priesthood of the Lord, Jesus Christ. The priesthood. This theme continues on into about Hebrews 10, 18. So for this chapter, a next chapter and halfway through Hebrews chapter 10, and we'll be talking about the priesthood of the Lord, Jesus Christ. Remember we're talking about the priesthood because the writer of Hebrews is pointing to the finished work of the Lord, Jesus Christ, the finished work of our great high priest. 2 (20m 29s): He's reminding people who are vacillating in their faith, particularly Hebrews in the first century, Jewish people in the first century who are vacillating in their faith about the Lord, Jesus Christ. Is he really who he said he is? And maybe we do the same thing in our lives as followers of the Lord, Jesus Christ. We, we question is Jesus who he claims to be. Is he really has. He really accomplished all that he claims to have accomplished? I mean, he's just Jesus really real. And so that's first century issues that the church was dealing with. And 21st century issues that the church deals with, we wrestle with the goodness of God and the finished work of God through Christ Jesus. 2 (21m 16s): We, we wrestle with these things. And so we need to continue to come back to the word of God, allowing ourselves to be filled with the spirit of God so that we see the truth of God. And we're able to apply it to our lives as we study the word of God. So Christ is our high priest. The theme will be continued through Hebrews 10, 18. We covered this a little bit last week, but we'll cover all of Hebrews chapter eight this week in verse one, it says, here's the main points. I love that. It says that here's the main point is like, okay, pay attention, right? This is the deal. Like we need to pay attention to what the writer is about to communicate. Here's the main points. We have a high priest who sat down in the place of honor beside the throne of the majestic God in heaven. 2 (22m 6s): So we have Jesus, Jesus. He completed his work and he continue his work. Number one, he is seated. What does that mean? That he is seated? Why did Jesus sit down? Well, it's kind of a recap of what we read in Hebrews chapter one, verse three, it says the sun radiates God's own glory and expresses the very character of God. And he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command. When he had cleansed us from our sins, he sat down, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven, Jesus sat down after he had finished his atoning work. 2 (22m 50s): After the work of atonement was complete. He sat down and he sat down because he finished the work necessary to redeem people, to redeem human beings, to redeem you and me. So if you're worried about the redemption, the power of God to redeem you, we need, you need to understand. We need to be reminded that Jesus sits down and he sat down because his work was complete. Hebrews 10, 11, and 12 says this under the old covenant, the priest stands. Why, what we're going to see. He stands in ministers before the altar day, after day offering the same sacrifices again and again, which can never take away sins. 2 (23m 40s): But our high priest offered himself to God. Jesus, our high priest offered to God as a single sacrifice for sins. Good for all time. Then he sat down in the place of honor at God's right hand. He sat down because his one and only sacrifice was sufficient for all sin for all times. So if you're wondering if your sin can be covered, can be forgiven. Hebrews tells us. Absolutely. Absolutely. So stop wrestling with past sins and then get victory over present sins know that God has given his life so that we might be forgiven, but that we also might get the victory over sin. 2 (24m 29s): So whatever you're struggling with God will give you the grace to get through it and get over it. Hebrews 12 two says because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross disregarding its shame. Now he is seated at the place of honor beside God's throne. If you're wondering if God wants to forgive you, you were the joy that was set before him for the joy set before him, he endured the cross. He wanted to see us forgiven and redeemed. 2 (25m 10s): It's always been a God's. It's always been God's idea to redeem humanity. We're going to read here just a little bit about how God it took the Israelites by the hand and led them out of Egypt. There's that intimate connection that God has with his people. Even in the old covenant, there's this connection, a heart connection that God has with his people. God wants to take his people by the hand and lead them out of, for the Israelites. Egypt represented slavery and bondage for us. Egypt represents our old life. Our old experience. God wants to take us by the hand. This is the beauty of this new covenant. 2 (25m 50s): This is why the, the writer of Hebrews is so impactfully communicating this truth so that the people who are tempted to drift back into legalism and the law, people who are tempted to drift back into an old way of relating to God, they can begin to see the truth again, and God can begin to draw them by his love and by his spirit, by his grace and by his goodness to come and follow him and to trust him, he, he is seated because he has finished the work of redemption. Some of us are still trying to work at getting that thing done in our own flesh. You know, we're, we're doing all kinds of stuff in the flesh, you know, doing, trying to earn God's favor and we're trying to figure out our God has you won't figure it out. 2 (26m 39s): There's a new covenant because people couldn't figure it out. They were broken in their sin, broken in their rebellion and God took them by the hand and ushered them out. God wants to take you by the hand, take us by the hand and assure us out because of the joy awaiting him. He endured the cross disregarding its shame, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God's throne, Hebrews eight two, there he ministers in the heavenly tabernacle, the true place of worship that was built by the Lord and not by human hands. And so we're beginning to see a contrast here. 2 (27m 20s): So Jesus is ministering in the heavenly tabernacle. As the people traveled through the wilderness, they erected a tabernacle, a place of worship. This place that the priest would offer sacrifices and it was to be built and constructed specifically, we'll get into that more next week, but it was to be built specifically to God's design. So we're beginning to see that this contrast again, where there there's this earthly tabernacle that was used for a moment, but it's just a shadow of what was to come now, Jesus, again, declaring the superiority of his ministry. 2 (28m 2s): He's ministering from this heavenly tabernacle that has been built by God and not by human hands. We're often trying to build something of a, of a religious experience by our own hands. And we're leaving God out of it all together by just trying to do all of the right stuff. And we're not connected. We're not connected at the heart to the living. God, we're not connected in our soul to God. We're just trying to, we've got all these external things going on, but it's not stuff that God is interested in. He's interested in, in an intimacy, a connection to a, a love relationship with him. 2 (28m 43s): He, he, that's what he's interested in. He, he continues to minister to, to that end, to draw us by his spirits. He is ministering, continually ministering everything and Hebrews points to the permanence of Jesus as our high priest. And it stands in contrast to the temporal ministry of the Levitical priest to the Levitical priests would minister to for a time they would die. New priests would come in. Jesus is our eternal priest forever. He ministers can end. He continues to minister as our high priest forever. 2 (29m 25s): What does his ministry look like? It's it gets interesting to me that that Jesus, Jesus, God, in the flesh, the incarnate eternal God, the creator sustainer of all things continues to minister. He's ministering to us. Eh, he's present with us in our lives. What does his ministry look like? Hebrews 7 23 through 25 says this. There were men again, comparing the old to the new. There were many priests under the old system for death, prevented them from remaining in office. But because Jesus lives forever, his priesthood lasts forever. 2 (30m 9s): Therefore he is able once and forever to save those who come to God through him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf. It's pretty cool that God is interceding for us, that he is praying for us. I don't think we connect to that truth. Well enough to believe that God God knows us because it it's it's the indication is that if he's praying for us, he knows us so that he knows you you're you you've never been forgotten by God. You've never drifted so far that he's forgotten about you, that he, he knows you intimately in loves you intimately. 2 (30m 49s): And he's interceding for you, praying for you. God knows us. And he cares about us. There's this intimacy that, that we're believing from scripture and understanding from scripture and that he's willing to help us. He's he's we don't have to beg him to help us. A lot of our prayers come from a place of total lack of faith. We're saying, Lord, please. And we're begging God to help us when we don't even realize that it's his idea to intercede for us in the first place, into inter and to minister, to us out of his great love and connection to us, God is he knows us. 2 (31m 31s): He cares about us. He's willing to help us and he's and he's able to help. Plus, I mean, this is the, he is without he is without into his resource. And he's able to help us in the journey. It's a discipleship program for men and women in our church and really around the globe. We like to say, God knows God cares. And God is willing. And God is able. I mean, that's just the most simplistic way to talk about the intimate relationship that God desires to have with us. He knows he cares. 2 (32m 14s): He's willing. And that's where maybe we wrestle, you know, God are you really, are you wanting to help? Are you interested in helping? He's willing? And he's completely able to help. Prayer is a powerful weapon, especially, especially when Jesus is praying, especially. And we're not going to understand on this side of heaven, I don't think all of the theological implications of Jesus as praying to God, the father, let's just trust that there's power in it, but there's power in the reality that God is ministering to us. 2 (32m 54s): He's ministering to us in somebody's profound ways we pray and he's listening. That's ministry. Once you feel ministered to, and you're, you're pouring out your heart to someone and they're just listening, right? They're just listening. It's just, it's so therapeutic and spiritually so good when somebody just will listen, we cry out to the living God all of the time. And he listens because he cares. He cares about us. There's ministry happening when he touches our bodies or encourages our spirits or reconciles our relationship when he continues to forgive us and to cast our sin, as far as the east is from the west and choosing not to remember that against us any longer there's incredible ministry. 2 (33m 49s): So it wasn't one and done. I mean, in, in the sense that we were have been redeemed, the finished work of Christ happened, and that was one. But, but then he continues. He finished his work and he continues his work. He finished it and he continues it. Maybe, maybe you're here today and you kind of gave your life to the Lord at some point, but you haven't continued on in that relationship with the Lord, he's called you to a lifetime, an eternity of walking with him and trusting him. He Romans 8 31 through 34, kind of reiterate some and communicates powerfully that the truth that I've been trying to communicate, what shall we say about such wonderful things is as these, if God is for us, who can ever be against us since he did not even spare his own son, but gave him up for us all. 2 (34m 45s): Won't he also give us everything else who dares accused us, whom God has chosen for his own. No one for God himself has given us right. Standing with himself who then will condemn us. No one for Christ. Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us. And he is sitting in the place of honor at God's right hand pleading for us. Isn't that great news, right? We live under such heavy guilt and condemnation at times. And, and, and when we allow ourselves to stay there, it minimizes and diminishes the finished work of the Lord. 2 (35m 28s): Jesus Christ. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Now, if you're feeling guilty about perpetual sin, get that dealt, get that confessed, get move on from that by God's grace, be done with that by by God's grace and in Jesus name, but then allow the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ to wash over you. Don't don't allow the enemy to fill you with condemnation and, and feelings of heaviness and guilt. Once it's dealt with it's still with verse three, it says, it says incense, every high priest. Again, this is a comparison to earthly priestly system and their heavenly priestly system. 2 (36m 10s): And since every high priest is required to offer gifts and sacrifices, our high priest must make an offering to Dunn. You made did he is he is that done. Hebrews seven tells us Jesus offered himself for the people's sins. That is the sacrifice. But again, there's no comparison between the two that earthly priests continue to offer sacrifices. One year after year one, after the other, Jesus offered himself once. And for all, in fact, we're going to see that Jesus wouldn't even make it in the earthly system because he was of the tribe of Judah. And he wasn't he wasn't of the Levi tribe. It says here in verse four, if he were on earth, he would not even be a priest. 2 (36m 50s): Since there are already priests who offer the gifts required by the law, they serve in a system of worship. That's only a copy, a shadow of the real one and a heaven. It's it's not even a comparison. It's not even a comparison. What Jesus has accomplished in the new covenant, in the new system compared to the old there's no, it's the old system is a copy. It's a shadow. It's, it's a placeholder pointing us to what would come in Christ and what would be fulfilled in Christ. And so for working, if we're trusting God, believing God in some kind of with some kind of human effort to keep the law by trying to do everything just right. 2 (37m 33s): We've missed it altogether. If we, if we're trying to secure righteousness by keeping the law it's it's futile it's and, and this was the problem with the old system, keeping the law didn't make anybody righteous. Nobody was able to do it. They serve in a system of worship. That is a copy, a shadow of the real one in heaven for when Moses was getting ready to build the tabernacle. God gave him this warning. Be sure that you make everything according to the pattern. I've shown you here, the mountain and, and access 25. You can read the next verse 25. 2 (38m 12s): God is giving Moses kind of the blueprint for the tabernacle and everything that was going to go into it. He said, be sure that you make everything according to the pattern. I have shown you here on the mountain. We'll talk more about the Tabernacles we get into Hebrews chapter nine next week. We'll kind of unpack that some more and the symbolism of everything that's in there, but Hebrews eight, six says, but now Jesus, our high priest has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood for he is the one who mediates for us at far better covenant with God based on better promises, I can't help, but think there, there might be people in the room who are operating in a human it through human effort, trying to connect to God, kind of our broken down old way of thinking, religious kind of way of thinking. 2 (39m 16s): There's there are people who are trying to connect to God that way. And Jesus has made it Uber clear that that old system, it was a placeholder. It was never meant to be the permanent thing. But we in the church, even though we get super legalistic about things and we get hung up on things and we, we want to relate to God, maybe in a way that is historically familiar with us, but we're not in all of that. We're not connected to the living work and the living person of the Lord, Jesus Christ. 2 (39m 59s): And this is what God is calling us to Hebrews eight, six, but now Jesus, our high priest has been given a ministry that is superior to the old priesthood for he is the one who mediates a far better covenant with God based on better promises. Number three, he's our mediator. He is our mediator. He is our go between. He's our go between during the civil war, a soldier was trying to get a meeting with Abraham Lincoln. He was trying to get permission, not to be enlisted into the armed forces, due to personal circumstances with his family. 2 (40m 46s): And so he made an appointment with the president and the day that he was scheduled to go have the appointment with the president, he went to the white house and, and they, I didn't have him on record or in the schedule. And so they turned them away. And so this young man went to the park nearby and was just sitting on a bench and, and he was dejected. He was sad. He, he missed his opportunity to speak to the president. Well, this little boy came up and noticed that he was sad and, and asked him what was going on. And so the guy just poured out his heart to this, this little boy and explained to him that he was supposed to meet with the, that he needed to meet with the president to get this waiver for service in the military. 2 (41m 39s): And he was just dejected. And Sadie said, Hey, the little boy said, Hey, come follow me. It's a little boy led him up to the white house around the back door, passing by security. And everybody, everybody just kind of waving at him and just letting him through. He walks into the white house and he walks right into the oval office. And there's the precedent. So this little boy walks up to the president and the president says, well, Hey tad, how are you? What can I do for you son? And he said, Hey dad, there's this guy who needs to talk to you. 2 (42m 22s): And that's what Jesus has done for us as our mediator. He, he gets us around all of the blue tape, all our red, what does it re red tape, whatever it's called. What's blue tape. Oh, blue tape is painter's tape. I was using, I was thinking blue tape because I was over at 1 0 2 and we were moving this vault door. So it's an old bank, right? And so there's this vault door that has been, we took it off nine months ago and it's been sitting in the middle of the room for nine months because it's 3,500 pounds, 3,500 pounds. So we finally get a forklift in and I did something. 2 (43m 2s): I cut my finger and I, I, I, we had to keep moving. And so I wrapped it with blue tape and that's what I was thinking, blue tape. So anyway, blue tape is not a good bandage, by the way, I was bleeding all over the place. And so a little tad gets this man right to the precedent. Jesus gets us right to the father. He's our mediator. We make it so complicated. And we got to do all these things. But if we just connect to the mediator, follow the mediator, we get right to the father. This is the power of the gospel, the simplicity of the gospel. 2 (43m 45s): We have access to the father through the son and it's because of the finished work of Jesus on the cross. He died so that we might be connected, have relationship to and with and live eternally with the Lord. It's easy to convolute things and confuse things. And, and the enemy wants to make things very complicated for us so that we lose track and lose touch with the simplicity of what Jesus has done. 2 (44m 25s): First Timothy two five says for, there is one God and one mediator who can reconcile and humanity. The man Christ Jesus. He gave his life to purchase freedom for everyone. This is the message God gave to the world at just the right time. Hebrews eight seven says if the first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no need for a second covenant to replace it. But when God found fault with the people he said, the day is coming, says the Lord, I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. So this new covenant pastor David music describes is a covenant of grace and not of works. 2 (45m 13s): It's a covenant marked by believing and receiving instead of by earning and deserving. I think that's the point I was trying to make earlier. It's a covenant based on believing and receiving as opposed to earning and deserving. Hebrews eight, nine says this covenant will not be like the one I made with their ancestors. When I took them by the hand and led them out of the land of Egypt. Again, it God's initiative. He delivered the people out of their slavery at God's initiative. He's wanting to take us today by the hand and lead us out of our old life. 2 (45m 55s): Verse continues. They did not remain faithful to my covenant. So I turned my back on them says the Lord, it sounds harsh. But a covenant normally involves the full cooperation of both parties. If one party defaults, the covenant becomes invalid. So this is virtually what happened to the old covenant. The Israelites did not continue in the covenant, which means that they broke away from its conditions. And when God says, I turn my back on, not on them, it's not to be understood as an arbitrary act of rejection or disinterest, but is as in the end inevitable consequence of his people turning their backs on the covenant that he made for their benefit and blessing. 2 (46m 42s): It was a broken system. So God brings a new system, verse 10, but this new covenant I will make with the people of Israel on that day, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds. So this is the covenant he made with the people of Israel. I will put my laws in their minds and I will write them on their hearts. What was the law before was on tablets of stone, external. Where is the law? Now it's internal. It's again communicating the superiority of this new covenant, the laws in our hearts. And in our minds, he's written them there. I will be their God and they will be my people and they will not need to teach their neighbors nor will they need to teach their relatives saying you should know the Lord for everyone from the least to the greatest will know me all ready. 2 (47m 29s): So God is changing the higher red, a hierarchical system where the people must rely on a priest or a scribe to explain to them the truth that God is putting that truth in their hearts so that they understand the truth of God. And now they can relate to God. One to one through the mediator, through the Lord, Jesus Christ, the finished work there they can connect with. And so it changes this old system of the law and moves it from this outward works-based system into this intimate connection with the Lord where he's putting this, this law in their hearts. 2 (48m 12s): So Jesus is our mediator. He's our high priest. He's our go between. He's our minister. And he is the one who completed the work of redemption for humanity. So he's calling us into this place and he said, and I will forgive their wickedness. And we'll never again, remember their sins. This is the covenant by which Jesus has the power to forgive sins. Never to remember them again. When God speaks of a new covenant, it means he has made the first one obsolete and it's now out of date and will soon disappear. And that thing disappeared at ADC and 80 70, when the temple was destroyed, animal sacrifices ceased, it disappeared to this day when we were in Israel a couple of years ago, w our tour guide was a Jewish man in his they're talking about gathering materials to rebuild the temple. 2 (49m 10s): And he's hoping that he will be chosen to be one who goes into the temple to offer sacrifices. There they're disconnected from the reality. Choose not to believe in the reality that Jesus is the Messiah and that he finished the work and ushered in a new covenant. We need to stop striving in our flash and trust the finished work of the Lord, Jesus Christ, whatever that means to you as the Lord, where am I striving? Where am I lacking faith in that finished work? I know I'm striving when I'm really begging God for something. 2 (49m 54s): And I'm like, Lord, you gotta do this. I it's, I, I recognize that it's not prayers of faith, but it's prayers of desperation. And then I changed my prayer and say, thank you, Lord, for what you will do in this situation. Thank you, God that you're working in this situation. Thank you God that you know about this situation. Thank you, God, that you are doing something in this situation. Even if I don't see it. Thank you, Lord God, I pray that you would just give me peace as I walked through it. And then all of a sudden it just shifts everything. I'm no longer anxious, no longer angry, no longer frustrated, but I'm just trusting Jesus. 2 (50m 35s): Jesus completed his work and he continues his work. He's seated. He is ministering. He is our mediator. And today is family Sunday for Sunday of the month, we take communion. And so I'm going to invite Jean up. She's going to lead us in communion today. And then after the service, we're going to have baptisms available. So as Jean comes forward, we're going to borrow this microphone. Come on on Jean. So alive. Give that a try there and see if that's live. 3 (51m 11s): Hello. That's a bit too much, right? Good morning. I just want to talk a little bit about community. And this morning community in is one of two sacraments that was taught by Jesus. The first was baptism, which we're doing today, which is an outward sign of one's entrance into God's family, by your faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ God's son. And the second sacrament is communion, which denotes your sanctification to be sanctified is to be consecrated. The bow of the dictionary says to be dedicated, to be made holy. So this is a holy feast, a sacrament. 3 (51m 55s): Now the word sacrament was first used by the Romans. It was called sacramentum and it was when a Roman soldier pledged to serve his nation. He made a sacrament and we do the same thing. We pledge our allegiance to Jesus and to the gospel and to God's covenant promise, which we learned about this morning to us. So it's a serious remembrance that Jesus initiated at the last supper with his disciples before his death. When after breaking the bread, he said, this is my body broken. Feel, do this in remembrance of me. And in the same way after supper, he took the cup saying this cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this whenever you drink it in remembrance of me. 3 (52m 38s): So the last supper was a celebration of the Passover, which was a joyous remembrance of the saving of the lives of the Israelites. When the death angel passed over the land of Egypt, killing all the first born. So our death has also been passed over for a born into an eternal life. And this is the new covenant which Jesus made and which we celebrate each month. So we are also warned also not to take this feast unworthily, but to examine ourselves less, we participate and become sick. One Corinthians chapter 11. So there are five images to communion. 3 (53m 19s): The first is Thanksgiving to the father. And then that first century, right up and towards the end of the middle ages, which is around the 15 hundreds, communion was a joyful celebration. It wasn't the solemn thing that it became after that. Okay. Where are we? So we actually gave grateful things for the life that Jesus laid down to become the first fruits of God's family of which we are apart. The second is that we commemorate Christ as we remember just who he is and what he achieved through his death and resurrection, that he is the Lord that he never leaves nor forsakes us. That we are cleansed from all of our sins and our shortcomings. 3 (54m 4s): The third is that we sacrifice ourselves, which is our reasonable act of service. According to Paul in Romans chapter 12, we are made holy we've been cleansed for a purpose, fourthly that we love one another in acts 2 42 that says he steadfastly devoted themselves constantly to the instruction and fellowship of the apostles to the Lord's supper and prayer. We need to be participators, enjoy togetherness and care for one another. Lastly, this celebration is a foretaste of things to come. When we celebrate in heaven, the wedding feast of the lamb. When we, as Christ bride join in union with him, face-to-face forever. 3 (54m 49s): So before I invite you to take the elements and share the celebration with family, with friends or even somebody you don't yet know, I'd like to share a poem that the Lord gave me about communion. We gather here together to remember what took place to save mankind from death and hell has got offered us, his grace, his precious son, the holy Christ was part of God. You see? So it was also God, the father's pain that day at Calvary together, they designed and made this universe for man, but evil reared, its ugly head fouling up the plan. 3 (55m 29s): The father, God though sat and devised another way, chose Abraham to form a race known as the Jews today. Alas, the sinful nature kept its iron grip on man. And God revealed through profits that he had a better plan. They prophesied a Savior's birth to be in Bethlehem. Your shoer made his entrance son of God and son of man through the years that followed, he proved that he was God with teachings and miracles. No one else had done before and then embraced his destiny to Calvary. He came battered, bleeding, naked. He bore the awful shame. 3 (56m 10s): He died an agonizing death to appease the holy God, the punishment that we deserve. He took upon himself. The veil in the holy place, separated man from God was ripped from top to bottom, giving access to the Lord Jesus, death and resurrection made a pathway. We can tread and enter into life with him a life that has no end. So as we take this bread and cup with truly grateful hearts, let's stop. Be still and ponder the cost until I Lord and take this life. He's given us to focus on what's true to love and serve our precious Lord today and all life through. 3 (56m 53s): This is a celebration of the greatest sacrifice. The glorious son of God, most high laying down his life. Let's take the bread. As we just remember our laws, body broken for us And to compete. I holy feast, we, we take this a little bit of juice, but you know, it's it represents such a huge thing about it. Jesus Christ cleanses you from all your sin. 3 (57m 37s): As Steve mentioned this morning, God bless you all. 2 (57m 56s): Thank you gene. Thank you, Lord. Let's invite the worship team forward and this praise they come forward. And Lord, thank you for communion for the opportunity to be reminded where to take communion as often as we remember. So Lord, we thank you that we're reminded today of your, your great goodness, your great grace. We love you. God help us never to take it lightly, but see it as an opportunity. This act of worship taking communion Lord, that we would see that as an opportunity to refresh ourselves in you receive fresh grace, God, to recommit our lives to you. 2 (58m 55s): If you're here today and you've never accepted the grace of the Lord, Jesus Christ, it's really a simple, yet profound and powerful thing that God calls us to. He calls us to recognize our sinfulness are all of our mistakes and failures recognize that we have missed the mark fallen short of God's glorious standard and that we need his forgiveness and his grace. The Bible says that if we confess our sin, he is faithful. 2 (59m 37s): And just to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. So if you're here today and you need the grace of the Lord, Jesus Christ for your sin, if you need forgiveness, go and ask the Lord, ask the Lord for forgiveness, For his love and for his grace. And as you experience that forgiveness and his love and his grace, you also experience the adoption of God. You will be adopted into the family of God and you'll be no longer outside of the family, but you will be a child of God, a son or a daughter. 2 (1h 0m 19s): And then I encourage you. If you've made that decision, I would encourage you to get baptized today. Again, we will have shorts and t-shirts available in towels. And so that will be on that back patio right after service. And so Lord, we just pray God that you would just continue the good work Lord. Thank you for your grace. Thank you, Lord. I feel compelled if you are here today and you've given your life to Jesus, but you've never been baptized make today your day. Thank you for your grace. Jesus. Amen. Let's worship 1 (1h 5m 47s): Thank you, Jesus. That we get to praise your name. We lift your name. Hi, thank you for your presence in Jesus name, we pray. Amen. If you'd like prayer this morning, we have a prayer team, so you can make your way forward. If you'd like to get baptized, we have an info team out front, so you can make your way up there and sign up for that for today. Have a wonderful day.
