1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:03,040 Today is the last Sunday in our series worship, 2 00:00:03,040 –> 00:00:05,400 what we do, and why we do it. 3 00:00:05,400 –> 00:00:08,280 And as you know, if you’ve been here over these last weeks, 4 00:00:08,280 –> 00:00:09,620 our aim throughout the series 5 00:00:09,620 –> 00:00:13,480 has been that we understand the elements of worship 6 00:00:13,480 –> 00:00:17,200 so that we can enter into them more fully together. 7 00:00:17,200 –> 00:00:21,200 And today we come to the Lord’s Supper. 8 00:00:21,200 –> 00:00:23,400 Once a month, we gather in this way 9 00:00:23,400 –> 00:00:26,799 around the Lord’s Table, that’s what we do. 10 00:00:26,799 –> 00:00:29,280 I want us to understand why we do it 11 00:00:29,459 –> 00:00:32,720 and how we can enter into this part of worship 12 00:00:32,720 –> 00:00:33,919 more fully together. 13 00:00:33,919 –> 00:00:36,200 And I think this is an area of worship 14 00:00:36,200 –> 00:00:38,660 about which many people have more questions 15 00:00:38,660 –> 00:00:39,720 than any other. 16 00:00:39,720 –> 00:00:43,320 Many folks find the Lord’s Table confusing. 17 00:00:43,320 –> 00:00:45,419 They find very conflicting emotions. 18 00:00:45,419 –> 00:00:46,779 They have questions about well, 19 00:00:46,779 –> 00:00:50,180 should I participate, should I take the bread or wine 20 00:00:50,180 –> 00:00:52,299 and how should I know if I should or shouldn’t? 21 00:00:52,299 –> 00:00:56,320 What good does it do if I do and so forth and so on? 22 00:00:56,320 –> 00:00:57,500 And so we’re going to try and address 23 00:00:57,619 –> 00:01:00,340 some of these issues in a very, very practical way 24 00:01:00,340 –> 00:01:04,059 so that we may be able to know how 25 00:01:04,059 –> 00:01:08,580 to enter more fully into the meaning of this wonderful gift 26 00:01:08,580 –> 00:01:12,120 that God has given to us as Christian believers 27 00:01:12,120 –> 00:01:14,180 in worship together. 28 00:01:14,180 –> 00:01:16,800 Now we’ve been learning that God speaks to us 29 00:01:16,800 –> 00:01:20,180 through words and pictures. 30 00:01:20,180 –> 00:01:22,360 And there is a beautiful example of this 31 00:01:22,360 –> 00:01:24,860 that will help us to think rightly about the Lord’s Supper 32 00:01:24,860 –> 00:01:27,980 that we find very early in the Bible story. 33 00:01:27,980 –> 00:01:30,680 Do you remember, right back in the book of Genesis, 34 00:01:30,680 –> 00:01:33,419 there was a time when life on Earth 35 00:01:33,419 –> 00:01:36,900 had become so violent and so corrupt 36 00:01:36,900 –> 00:01:41,699 that God brought judgment on the whole world. 37 00:01:41,699 –> 00:01:43,339 But of course, God is merciful, 38 00:01:43,339 –> 00:01:45,839 and even within his judgment, he remembered mercy 39 00:01:45,839 –> 00:01:47,519 and he spoke to Noah. 40 00:01:47,519 –> 00:01:48,660 Noah built an ark. 41 00:01:48,660 –> 00:01:50,839 His family were saved in that 42 00:01:50,839 –> 00:01:53,339 and brought through the judgment of God. 43 00:01:53,660 –> 00:01:55,879 And then, after the flood, 44 00:01:55,879 –> 00:01:57,519 God gave a wonderful promise 45 00:01:57,519 –> 00:01:59,559 in Genesis chapter nine and verse 11. 46 00:01:59,559 –> 00:02:03,500 God said, I will establish my covenant with you. 47 00:02:03,500 –> 00:02:06,760 Never again will all life be cut off 48 00:02:06,760 –> 00:02:08,600 by the waters of a flood. 49 00:02:08,600 –> 00:02:13,600 Never again will a flood destroy the whole Earth. 50 00:02:14,580 –> 00:02:16,479 Now these are marvelous words. 51 00:02:16,479 –> 00:02:19,259 This is a great promise from God, 52 00:02:19,259 –> 00:02:21,899 a promise in which God speaks 53 00:02:21,919 –> 00:02:26,679 of His gracious sustaining of the whole planet 54 00:02:26,679 –> 00:02:30,820 in His mercy, but it is such an important promise. 55 00:02:30,820 –> 00:02:33,880 It is a covenant promise that God gave us 56 00:02:33,880 –> 00:02:38,800 not only words, but He also gave us a picture. 57 00:02:39,960 –> 00:02:44,960 God, the Bible says, set the rainbow in the sky. 58 00:02:47,500 –> 00:02:51,880 And the rainbow is the visual seal 59 00:02:51,899 –> 00:02:54,779 of the promise of God. 60 00:02:54,779 –> 00:02:57,619 Every time you see a rainbow, 61 00:02:57,619 –> 00:03:00,839 it is God’s visible reminder 62 00:03:00,839 –> 00:03:03,960 of His promise that He will not destroy 63 00:03:03,960 –> 00:03:07,300 the earth again in a flood. 64 00:03:08,179 –> 00:03:10,720 So every time we see the rain, 65 00:03:10,720 –> 00:03:13,559 when there’s a rainbow, we are reminded visibly 66 00:03:13,559 –> 00:03:16,880 that that rain is a sign of God’s mercy 67 00:03:16,880 –> 00:03:21,119 to sustain life, not a sign of His judgment 68 00:03:21,119 –> 00:03:25,440 as it once was to destroy life. 69 00:03:25,440 –> 00:03:26,759 So the rainbow, in other words, 70 00:03:26,759 –> 00:03:28,479 is God’s visible word. 71 00:03:28,479 –> 00:03:30,759 It is God’s speaking to us in pictures. 72 00:03:30,759 –> 00:03:34,279 It is God’s reinforcing 73 00:03:34,279 –> 00:03:36,520 of His promise 74 00:03:36,520 –> 00:03:39,759 with a visual image that seals it 75 00:03:39,759 –> 00:03:41,600 into our minds and our hearts. 76 00:03:41,600 –> 00:03:43,600 I remember as a child, the way in which 77 00:03:43,600 –> 00:03:45,199 my mother always tried to seal 78 00:03:45,199 –> 00:03:46,720 words and pictures together. 79 00:03:46,720 –> 00:03:48,240 Every time there was a rainbow, 80 00:03:48,240 –> 00:03:50,240 and I can promise you it rained a lot 81 00:03:50,240 –> 00:03:51,679 in Scotland, 82 00:03:51,679 –> 00:03:53,399 but every time there was a rainbow, 83 00:03:53,399 –> 00:03:54,600 I can still hear her voices saying, 84 00:03:54,600 –> 00:03:56,240 oh, come and see the rainbow collar, 85 00:03:56,240 –> 00:03:57,360 and she’d say. 86 00:03:57,360 –> 00:04:00,240 It’s the sign of the mercy of God. 87 00:04:00,240 –> 00:04:03,600 The picture that seals 88 00:04:03,600 –> 00:04:05,479 into the mind, even of someone 89 00:04:05,479 –> 00:04:08,899 who does not yet understand deep things. 90 00:04:09,839 –> 00:04:12,960 The visual sign of the promise 91 00:04:12,960 –> 00:04:15,320 and of the mercy of God. 92 00:04:15,320 –> 00:04:17,660 Now, in the same way, 93 00:04:17,660 –> 00:04:20,119 we are learning that God has given us 94 00:04:20,119 –> 00:04:22,559 two wonderful pictures 95 00:04:22,559 –> 00:04:25,399 that are seals of his promises 96 00:04:25,399 –> 00:04:27,459 in Jesus Christ. 97 00:04:27,459 –> 00:04:29,440 They are baptism 98 00:04:29,440 –> 00:04:31,399 and the Lord’s supper. 99 00:04:31,399 –> 00:04:32,500 Last time, we saw that 100 00:04:32,500 –> 00:04:33,619 the whole of the Christian faith 101 00:04:33,619 –> 00:04:36,160 really is summed up in these two visual images, 102 00:04:36,160 –> 00:04:39,420 taking a bath and having a meal. 103 00:04:39,420 –> 00:04:42,160 My inner life, we saw, needs to be washed, 104 00:04:42,160 –> 00:04:44,359 my inner life needs to be fed. 105 00:04:44,359 –> 00:04:47,059 These are God’s promises to me in Jesus Christ. 106 00:04:47,059 –> 00:04:48,679 Christ will wash you, 107 00:04:48,679 –> 00:04:51,600 Christ will feed you, 108 00:04:51,600 –> 00:04:52,980 and last week, we saw that 109 00:04:52,980 –> 00:04:54,959 baptism is the visible seal 110 00:04:54,959 –> 00:04:56,000 of God’s promise 111 00:04:56,000 –> 00:04:58,779 to the mind and the heart of the believer. 112 00:04:58,779 –> 00:05:00,679 As a believer is baptized, 113 00:05:00,679 –> 00:05:01,679 God is saying, 114 00:05:01,679 –> 00:05:02,980 look, this is what I have done 115 00:05:02,980 –> 00:05:05,399 for you in Jesus Christ. 116 00:05:05,399 –> 00:05:07,279 You are washed. 117 00:05:07,279 –> 00:05:09,899 Now, today we come to the other word picture 118 00:05:09,899 –> 00:05:11,140 that God has given us, 119 00:05:11,140 –> 00:05:13,220 a seal of his promises 120 00:05:13,220 –> 00:05:15,320 to the minds and the hearts of the believer, 121 00:05:15,559 –> 00:05:17,399 like the rainbow, 122 00:05:17,399 –> 00:05:19,920 like baptism. 123 00:05:19,920 –> 00:05:20,920 The Lord’s Supper is 124 00:05:20,920 –> 00:05:24,399 God’s way of visually reinforcing 125 00:05:24,399 –> 00:05:26,399 to our minds and hearts 126 00:05:26,399 –> 00:05:29,440 his promises to us in Jesus Christ. 127 00:05:29,440 –> 00:05:31,200 And if you want to think this 128 00:05:31,200 –> 00:05:32,480 through a little bit further, 129 00:05:32,480 –> 00:05:37,720 remember, the rainbow doesn’t stop the rain. 130 00:05:37,720 –> 00:05:39,760 The rainbow is the sign 131 00:05:39,760 –> 00:05:44,059 that God has mercifully stopped the rain. 132 00:05:44,059 –> 00:05:45,959 Baptism doesn’t wash me. 133 00:05:45,959 –> 00:05:46,959 Baptism to the believer 134 00:05:46,959 –> 00:05:48,339 is the visual sign 135 00:05:48,339 –> 00:05:50,899 that God has washed me in Jesus Christ 136 00:05:50,899 –> 00:05:54,140 as I come to him in faith. 137 00:05:54,140 –> 00:05:56,660 The Lord’s Supper in the same way 138 00:05:56,660 –> 00:05:58,739 is not the thing that saves me, 139 00:05:58,739 –> 00:06:01,799 but it is the sign of God’s salvation 140 00:06:01,799 –> 00:06:04,420 in Jesus Christ for all who believe. 141 00:06:04,420 –> 00:06:06,940 It reinforces to my mind and heart 142 00:06:06,940 –> 00:06:10,399 what God promises in his word. 143 00:06:10,420 –> 00:06:11,500 And we need this 144 00:06:11,500 –> 00:06:15,279 because we so easily forget. 145 00:06:15,279 –> 00:06:16,480 How many times this week 146 00:06:16,480 –> 00:06:17,920 have you thought about the fact 147 00:06:17,920 –> 00:06:22,679 that God sustains this world in his mercy? 148 00:06:23,440 –> 00:06:25,899 That this planet continues to exist 149 00:06:25,899 –> 00:06:27,220 because he sustains it 150 00:06:27,220 –> 00:06:28,799 and holds back judgement? 151 00:06:28,799 –> 00:06:31,179 How many times have you thought about that? 152 00:06:31,179 –> 00:06:34,079 Don’t think I’ve thought about that much this week, 153 00:06:34,079 –> 00:06:37,760 but if I see a rainbow I’ll be reminded. 154 00:06:37,760 –> 00:06:39,040 Do you see, the visual image 155 00:06:39,119 –> 00:06:42,559 is reinforced to our dull and slow minds 156 00:06:42,559 –> 00:06:44,220 the reality of the promise 157 00:06:44,220 –> 00:06:46,119 that so easily is forgotten 158 00:06:46,119 –> 00:06:49,279 and brings it fresh to our mind 159 00:06:49,279 –> 00:06:50,739 and to our experience. 160 00:06:51,920 –> 00:06:53,119 Now you don’t need me to tell you, 161 00:06:53,119 –> 00:06:55,500 of course, that the subject of the Lord’s Supper 162 00:06:55,500 –> 00:06:57,660 has been a focus of long debate 163 00:06:57,660 –> 00:06:58,799 through the centuries. 164 00:06:58,799 –> 00:07:00,359 What precisely does it mean? 165 00:07:00,359 –> 00:07:02,079 What is its significance? 166 00:07:02,079 –> 00:07:03,260 And I’m not going to get into 167 00:07:03,260 –> 00:07:05,480 the details of all of that today, 168 00:07:05,519 –> 00:07:06,519 but what I do want to do 169 00:07:06,519 –> 00:07:09,079 is to give you a tool 170 00:07:09,079 –> 00:07:11,260 that will help you, I believe, 171 00:07:11,260 –> 00:07:14,220 to think through where truth lies 172 00:07:14,220 –> 00:07:16,040 in a Biblical way. 173 00:07:16,940 –> 00:07:18,959 I want you to picture for a few moments 174 00:07:18,959 –> 00:07:20,799 two curves. 175 00:07:20,799 –> 00:07:24,119 The first, I’m going to call the mountain curve. 176 00:07:24,119 –> 00:07:26,899 That is the curve that rises to a peak 177 00:07:26,899 –> 00:07:28,040 rather like a mountain 178 00:07:28,040 –> 00:07:29,899 and then falls back to the level 179 00:07:29,899 –> 00:07:31,000 at which it began. 180 00:07:31,940 –> 00:07:35,019 The other one I’m going to call the valley curve 181 00:07:35,019 –> 00:07:37,320 which swoops down from a great height 182 00:07:37,320 –> 00:07:40,059 to a low point and then rises back up 183 00:07:40,059 –> 00:07:42,000 to the height from which it came. 184 00:07:42,959 –> 00:07:47,959 Now, many people think of the Lord’s Supper 185 00:07:48,079 –> 00:07:50,600 like the mountain curve. 186 00:07:51,420 –> 00:07:53,880 In other words, they think of the Lord’s Supper 187 00:07:53,880 –> 00:07:56,600 as being something that begins with us 188 00:07:56,600 –> 00:07:58,700 offering something to God 189 00:08:00,279 –> 00:08:01,899 and that we, in the supper, 190 00:08:01,899 –> 00:08:03,700 offer something to God 191 00:08:03,700 –> 00:08:07,739 so that he in turn may be gracious to us. 192 00:08:07,739 –> 00:08:09,820 I’m saying that is the way in which many people 193 00:08:09,820 –> 00:08:13,920 have thought and taught about the Lord’s Supper. 194 00:08:13,920 –> 00:08:15,559 Now, the thing that’s important to remember 195 00:08:15,559 –> 00:08:17,739 about the mountain curve 196 00:08:17,739 –> 00:08:22,000 is that it begins and ends with us. 197 00:08:22,000 –> 00:08:25,440 It is essentially about us offering something to God 198 00:08:25,440 –> 00:08:30,059 so that God in turn may be gracious to us. 199 00:08:30,799 –> 00:08:36,500 The valley curve of course is precisely the opposite. 200 00:08:36,500 –> 00:08:41,340 The Lord’s Supper is not something that we offer to God, 201 00:08:41,340 –> 00:08:45,500 but something that he offers to us. 202 00:08:45,500 –> 00:08:50,500 It is after all the Lord’s Supper, not our supper. 203 00:08:51,059 –> 00:08:54,159 It’s he who invites us, not us who invite him. 204 00:08:55,599 –> 00:08:58,880 It is not so much about what we’re saying to God 205 00:08:59,340 –> 00:09:01,299 to try and bring about a change in him, 206 00:09:01,299 –> 00:09:03,539 but what God is saying to us, 207 00:09:03,539 –> 00:09:05,479 to bring about a change in us. 208 00:09:07,099 –> 00:09:11,659 Just as the rainbow is set by God in the sky 209 00:09:11,659 –> 00:09:14,659 to speak to us about his mercy, 210 00:09:14,659 –> 00:09:16,900 and baptism is God speaking to us 211 00:09:16,900 –> 00:09:18,960 about what he has done for us in Jesus Christ 212 00:09:18,960 –> 00:09:21,400 in this visual word, 213 00:09:21,400 –> 00:09:23,219 so the Lord’s Supper is not so much 214 00:09:23,219 –> 00:09:24,460 about us speaking to God, 215 00:09:24,460 –> 00:09:26,840 but about God speaking to us 216 00:09:26,940 –> 00:09:30,080 of the life that flows from the death 217 00:09:30,080 –> 00:09:32,000 of his son, Jesus Christ. 218 00:09:32,000 –> 00:09:33,320 Remember what it’s about. 219 00:09:33,320 –> 00:09:37,799 God speaks to us in words and in pictures. 220 00:09:37,799 –> 00:09:39,419 God takes the initiative 221 00:09:40,239 –> 00:09:42,020 in order that in his mercy, 222 00:09:42,020 –> 00:09:43,840 we may rise in newness of life 223 00:09:43,840 –> 00:09:45,299 to follow after him. 224 00:09:46,919 –> 00:09:48,479 Now here’s the obvious question. 225 00:09:49,359 –> 00:09:51,580 Should we think of the Lord’s Supper 226 00:09:51,580 –> 00:09:53,719 as being like the mountain curve 227 00:09:54,119 –> 00:09:56,700 or the valley curve? 228 00:09:58,099 –> 00:10:00,320 Is it about us offering something to God 229 00:10:00,320 –> 00:10:02,400 or is it about God offering something 230 00:10:02,400 –> 00:10:05,539 to us, speaking of what he offers 231 00:10:05,539 –> 00:10:07,359 in this wonderful picture? 232 00:10:08,479 –> 00:10:10,159 If we hear these different kinds 233 00:10:10,159 –> 00:10:11,859 of teachings in different places, 234 00:10:11,859 –> 00:10:13,979 how do we know which one is right? 235 00:10:16,080 –> 00:10:17,419 Well let me just say this, 236 00:10:18,400 –> 00:10:23,400 be very skeptical about any teaching 237 00:10:24,400 –> 00:10:27,559 that begins and ends with man. 238 00:10:28,960 –> 00:10:32,440 If it begins and ends with man, 239 00:10:33,539 –> 00:10:36,179 you could be pretty sure across anywhere 240 00:10:36,179 –> 00:10:37,820 in the theological spectrum, 241 00:10:37,820 –> 00:10:41,380 if it begins and ends with man, 242 00:10:41,380 –> 00:10:43,200 you can be pretty sure it’s not 243 00:10:43,200 –> 00:10:44,580 what the Bible teaches. 244 00:10:45,460 –> 00:10:48,440 Because big picture and all the way through, 245 00:10:48,440 –> 00:10:53,179 the scriptures begin and end with God. 246 00:10:53,179 –> 00:10:55,640 God is the great initiator, always. 247 00:10:55,640 –> 00:10:58,059 God is the Alpha and the Omega. 248 00:10:58,059 –> 00:10:59,979 God is the beginning and end. 249 00:10:59,979 –> 00:11:03,539 God reaches out to us before we ever reach out to Him. 250 00:11:03,539 –> 00:11:06,299 Salvation begins and ends with God. 251 00:11:06,299 –> 00:11:09,559 The Lord’s Supper begins and ends with God. 252 00:11:09,559 –> 00:11:12,340 That is how it was, of course, at the Last Supper. 253 00:11:13,179 –> 00:11:17,640 The disciples didn’t invite Jesus. 254 00:11:17,640 –> 00:11:23,059 Jesus gathered the disciples, He gathered them. 255 00:11:23,059 –> 00:11:25,179 He took the bread and the cup, 256 00:11:25,179 –> 00:11:26,880 He gave it to them. 257 00:11:26,880 –> 00:11:28,760 He explained its meaning. 258 00:11:28,760 –> 00:11:30,979 He invites them to eat and to drink. 259 00:11:30,979 –> 00:11:32,080 There’s no question of 260 00:11:32,080 –> 00:11:34,739 the disciples offering something to Jesus. 261 00:11:34,739 –> 00:11:37,640 No, this is Jesus taking bread and wine and 262 00:11:37,640 –> 00:11:40,299 explaining to them what the significance 263 00:11:40,440 –> 00:11:42,739 of His death will be. 264 00:11:42,739 –> 00:11:45,059 And how it will touch them for all eternity. 265 00:11:45,059 –> 00:11:47,440 That’s what the Lord’s Supper is all about. 266 00:11:48,460 –> 00:11:50,780 So the movement of the Lord’s Supper 267 00:11:50,780 –> 00:11:53,280 and it’s so important for us to understand this 268 00:11:53,280 –> 00:11:56,419 is from God to us. 269 00:11:57,320 –> 00:11:59,299 First from God to us, 270 00:11:59,299 –> 00:12:01,979 and then in response we reach out to Him, 271 00:12:01,979 –> 00:12:04,140 not the other way round. 272 00:12:04,140 –> 00:12:05,539 Now you say, okay that sounds like 273 00:12:05,539 –> 00:12:08,419 a theological point, does it make any difference? 274 00:12:08,419 –> 00:12:09,979 Oh you bet it makes a difference, 275 00:12:10,140 –> 00:12:12,099 it makes all the world of a difference. 276 00:12:14,520 –> 00:12:18,299 If the fundamental position of a Christian believer is 277 00:12:19,219 –> 00:12:22,260 that we have to somehow offer something to God 278 00:12:22,260 –> 00:12:24,760 in order that he should be gracious to us, 279 00:12:24,760 –> 00:12:26,359 what that means is that right now 280 00:12:26,359 –> 00:12:28,140 he’s still basically angry with us 281 00:12:28,140 –> 00:12:30,679 unless we do something here today to change that. 282 00:12:33,340 –> 00:12:34,260 And so we’re living with a God 283 00:12:34,260 –> 00:12:38,020 who is fundamentally not yet propitiated 284 00:12:38,059 –> 00:12:41,840 or always needing to be propitiated more 285 00:12:41,840 –> 00:12:43,580 because whatever has been done 286 00:12:43,580 –> 00:12:45,280 needs to be done again, and again, 287 00:12:45,280 –> 00:12:48,460 and again, and again, and again, and we’re never there. 288 00:12:50,380 –> 00:12:51,960 The very heart of the gospel 289 00:12:51,960 –> 00:12:55,559 is that God the Father has been fully satisfied 290 00:12:55,559 –> 00:12:56,739 in the death of Christ, 291 00:12:56,739 –> 00:12:58,799 and that on the cross he cried out 292 00:12:58,799 –> 00:13:00,140 in a loud voice, 293 00:13:00,140 –> 00:13:02,280 it is finished. 294 00:13:03,739 –> 00:13:06,479 And that is where our salvation lies. 295 00:13:06,479 –> 00:13:08,719 We do not add to it. 296 00:13:09,640 –> 00:13:11,679 Rather than us trying to do something 297 00:13:11,679 –> 00:13:11,820 to bring 298 00:13:12,940 –> 00:13:14,479 curry favor with God, 299 00:13:14,479 –> 00:13:17,640 the reality is that God is gracious 300 00:13:17,640 –> 00:13:20,000 towards all his people in Jesus Christ 301 00:13:20,000 –> 00:13:22,080 and in all our need and in all our weakness 302 00:13:22,080 –> 00:13:23,880 and in all our sinfulness still, 303 00:13:23,880 –> 00:13:26,219 he reaches out to us and says, 304 00:13:26,219 –> 00:13:28,520 look what I have done for you. 305 00:13:28,520 –> 00:13:31,039 I’ve told you it in words in the scripture, 306 00:13:31,039 –> 00:13:33,380 I want you to see it in pictures. 307 00:13:33,419 –> 00:13:37,179 My son’s body was broken, my son’s blood was shed 308 00:13:37,179 –> 00:13:39,619 and in this there is reconciliation. 309 00:13:39,619 –> 00:13:42,159 In this there is now newness of life. 310 00:13:42,159 –> 00:13:44,960 I want you to receive from me. 311 00:13:46,020 –> 00:13:48,799 Now you see these are two completely different worlds. 312 00:13:52,000 –> 00:13:55,619 So, the Lord’s Supper is a wonderful, wonderful gift. 313 00:13:57,400 –> 00:13:59,099 And for the rest of this morning, 314 00:13:59,099 –> 00:14:02,239 I want us to focus on the very practical question 315 00:14:02,380 –> 00:14:05,200 of having understood what it’s about, 316 00:14:06,380 –> 00:14:10,859 how can we enter more fully into its meaning 317 00:14:10,859 –> 00:14:12,580 and its significance? 318 00:14:13,659 –> 00:14:15,440 And I want to be very practical. 319 00:14:16,419 –> 00:14:20,520 What do you actually do during the time that we share 320 00:14:20,520 –> 00:14:21,900 as we will later this morning 321 00:14:21,900 –> 00:14:24,140 when the bread and the wine is passed around, 322 00:14:25,099 –> 00:14:28,880 music is played, what are you to do? 323 00:14:30,539 –> 00:14:31,359 I want to suggest 324 00:14:31,500 –> 00:14:33,200 other scriptures five things, 325 00:14:33,200 –> 00:14:35,700 and they’re very, very simple to remember. 326 00:14:35,700 –> 00:14:38,179 They’ve helped me for at least the last 20 years 327 00:14:39,099 –> 00:14:40,859 and I hope that in that kind of way, 328 00:14:40,859 –> 00:14:44,380 they may give a grid that will give a new dimension 329 00:14:44,380 –> 00:14:49,380 of meaning for many of us around the Lord’s Table. 330 00:14:49,700 –> 00:14:53,380 We find them in I Corinthians in chapter 11, 331 00:14:53,380 –> 00:14:57,460 very simply the first, I’ve called, look back. 332 00:14:57,460 –> 00:14:58,559 That’s the first thing you do 333 00:14:58,559 –> 00:15:01,539 when you come to the Lord’s Table, look back. 334 00:15:01,539 –> 00:15:03,559 The Lord Jesus on the night He was betrayed, 335 00:15:03,559 –> 00:15:07,000 I Corinthians 11-23, took bread, 336 00:15:07,000 –> 00:15:08,179 and when He’d given thanks, 337 00:15:08,179 –> 00:15:10,539 He broke it and said, This is my body, 338 00:15:10,539 –> 00:15:15,400 which is for you, do this in remembrance of me. 339 00:15:15,400 –> 00:15:18,599 In remembrance, then verse 25, 340 00:15:18,599 –> 00:15:23,599 whenever you drink the cup, do it in remembrance of me. 341 00:15:24,919 –> 00:15:25,960 So the very first thing, 342 00:15:25,960 –> 00:15:28,479 and it’s at the heart of the Lord’s Table, 343 00:15:28,479 –> 00:15:30,520 the first thing that I’m to do in the time 344 00:15:30,520 –> 00:15:33,840 that is afforded to me for this focus of worship 345 00:15:34,840 –> 00:15:37,640 and to use it to look back 346 00:15:39,460 –> 00:15:41,700 and to remember His sacrifice 347 00:15:41,700 –> 00:15:46,679 and to think about what He did for me on the cross. 348 00:15:49,960 –> 00:15:51,880 The bread is there to remind us 349 00:15:51,880 –> 00:15:54,440 of Christ’s body given for us. 350 00:15:55,340 –> 00:15:57,080 The cup is there to remind us 351 00:15:57,080 –> 00:16:00,539 of Christ’s blood poured out for us. 352 00:16:01,880 –> 00:16:03,440 I want you to notice the distinction 353 00:16:03,440 –> 00:16:05,479 between the bread and the wine. 354 00:16:05,479 –> 00:16:08,900 At the Last Supper, Jesus passed the bread 355 00:16:08,900 –> 00:16:13,140 and then it was sometime later that He passed the cup. 356 00:16:13,140 –> 00:16:15,640 Paul speaks of them both separately here 357 00:16:15,640 –> 00:16:17,979 in separate verses. 358 00:16:17,979 –> 00:16:21,080 At the communion service we pass out the bread, 359 00:16:22,200 –> 00:16:24,000 then the ushers come back. 360 00:16:24,500 –> 00:16:25,340 And then we pass out the cup. 361 00:16:25,340 –> 00:16:26,159 Why do we do that? 362 00:16:26,159 –> 00:16:28,039 Why do we not pass it all out at the same time? 363 00:16:28,039 –> 00:16:29,840 Be much simpler to save a few minutes. 364 00:16:29,840 –> 00:16:31,440 Why this distinction? 365 00:16:33,739 –> 00:16:35,119 Let’s think first about the bread. 366 00:16:35,119 –> 00:16:38,880 The bread speaks to us about Christ’s body 367 00:16:38,880 –> 00:16:41,539 in which He lived a perfect human life. 368 00:16:41,539 –> 00:16:45,340 Jesus lived the life that you and I could never live. 369 00:16:45,340 –> 00:16:47,080 He never spoke a sinful word. 370 00:16:47,080 –> 00:16:48,679 He never had a sinful thought. 371 00:16:48,679 –> 00:16:50,719 He always obeyed the father’s will. 372 00:16:50,739 –> 00:16:53,960 He always loved, always hoped, always believed. 373 00:16:55,559 –> 00:17:00,559 The body of Jesus speaks of His perfect life. 374 00:17:01,760 –> 00:17:03,080 And here’s what happened. 375 00:17:03,080 –> 00:17:06,839 The body in which He lived that perfect life 376 00:17:06,839 –> 00:17:10,560 was given for us. 377 00:17:10,560 –> 00:17:14,459 He laid down that perfect life 378 00:17:14,459 –> 00:17:17,599 of obedience so that we who are so far 379 00:17:17,599 –> 00:17:20,000 from the righteousness of God ourselves 380 00:17:20,060 –> 00:17:24,439 may find in Him what we do not have on our own. 381 00:17:26,040 –> 00:17:27,880 And this is important because when I come 382 00:17:27,880 –> 00:17:29,680 to the Lord’s table, I’m speaking just 383 00:17:29,680 –> 00:17:30,839 honestly and personally now. 384 00:17:30,839 –> 00:17:32,859 I’m sure you often find the same. 385 00:17:32,859 –> 00:17:34,920 When I come to the Lord’s table, 386 00:17:34,920 –> 00:17:38,479 I so often feel so unworthy. 387 00:17:39,680 –> 00:17:44,479 I feel that my Christian life is unworthy. 388 00:17:44,479 –> 00:17:47,319 I feel the poverty of my own faith. 389 00:17:48,280 –> 00:17:53,280 The incompleteness of my own repentance. 390 00:17:55,479 –> 00:17:59,280 But God speaks to me in the bread. 391 00:18:00,579 –> 00:18:04,079 He speaks to each one of us, and he reminds us, 392 00:18:04,079 –> 00:18:09,079 your salvation does not rest on the progress 393 00:18:09,760 –> 00:18:11,839 that you’ve made in the Christian life. 394 00:18:12,819 –> 00:18:17,819 Your salvation does not rest on the degree 395 00:18:18,219 –> 00:18:20,760 of the work of the Holy Spirit within you, 396 00:18:20,760 –> 00:18:23,260 but it rests, rather, on the completion 397 00:18:23,260 –> 00:18:26,619 of the work of Jesus Christ on the cross for you. 398 00:18:27,839 –> 00:18:31,319 None of us has ever offered perfect obedience to God, 399 00:18:31,319 –> 00:18:33,140 and none of us ever will. 400 00:18:34,719 –> 00:18:37,319 But when I take the bread, I am reminded 401 00:18:37,319 –> 00:18:41,060 that his obedience is mine. 402 00:18:42,760 –> 00:18:46,359 That that perfect life, that fulfillment 403 00:18:46,359 –> 00:18:51,359 of all righteousness, was for me. 404 00:18:55,119 –> 00:18:56,319 And then the cup, 405 00:18:57,119 –> 00:18:59,900 the wine speaks about blood poured out. 406 00:19:01,380 –> 00:19:04,160 Now, obviously blood, if it’s in the veins, 407 00:19:04,160 –> 00:19:08,420 speaks of life, but blood, if it’s separated 408 00:19:08,420 –> 00:19:11,640 from the body, speaks of death. 409 00:19:11,640 –> 00:19:14,400 You see, that’s the significance, the bread and the cup. 410 00:19:14,400 –> 00:19:18,219 They’re distinguished because the blood here 411 00:19:18,219 –> 00:19:21,699 is not speaking of the blood that energizes life. 412 00:19:21,699 –> 00:19:24,260 It is speaking of the blood poured out separate 413 00:19:24,260 –> 00:19:27,979 from the body, which obviously speaks of death. 414 00:19:29,140 –> 00:19:32,619 The bread speaks of the perfect obedience of his life. 415 00:19:32,619 –> 00:19:36,920 The cup speaks of the ultimate sacrifice of his death. 416 00:19:36,920 –> 00:19:39,119 His fulfilling of all righteousness, 417 00:19:39,160 –> 00:19:42,140 his atoning for our sins. 418 00:19:43,239 –> 00:19:45,119 The whole point, of course, of the cross 419 00:19:45,119 –> 00:19:47,219 is that his blood was shed. 420 00:19:48,239 –> 00:19:50,560 The spear was thrust into his side 421 00:19:50,560 –> 00:19:52,160 and blood flowed from him, 422 00:19:52,160 –> 00:19:54,979 the blood was separated from the body. 423 00:19:57,680 –> 00:19:59,680 Jesus fulfilled everything that the Father 424 00:19:59,680 –> 00:20:01,239 had called him to do. 425 00:20:02,760 –> 00:20:06,319 He was the one human being who, by right, 426 00:20:06,319 –> 00:20:08,520 had open access to heaven. 427 00:20:10,000 –> 00:20:12,739 But think of this, instead of entering heaven, 428 00:20:12,739 –> 00:20:14,839 which was his by right, 429 00:20:16,339 –> 00:20:18,640 he entered into hell instead. 430 00:20:19,579 –> 00:20:24,579 He entered every dimension of hell on the cross. 431 00:20:27,680 –> 00:20:30,880 Having no sin of his own, he chose to bear ours, 432 00:20:30,880 –> 00:20:34,719 he switched positions with us, 433 00:20:34,719 –> 00:20:37,680 counting the perfect obedience of his life 434 00:20:37,680 –> 00:20:41,520 as if it had been mine and bearing my disobedience 435 00:20:41,520 –> 00:20:43,880 and yours as if it had been his. 436 00:20:44,959 –> 00:20:49,780 He bore our sins, he became our sacrifice. 437 00:20:49,780 –> 00:20:51,439 And in the darkness of calvary, 438 00:20:51,439 –> 00:20:53,339 he absorbed the judgment of God 439 00:20:53,339 –> 00:20:55,959 and through the shedding of his blood, 440 00:20:55,959 –> 00:21:00,959 he released forgiveness for your sins and for mine. 441 00:21:02,800 –> 00:21:05,119 Now, this is what Jesus Christ has done for you. 442 00:21:05,119 –> 00:21:07,020 The whole New Testament is about this. 443 00:21:07,020 –> 00:21:08,859 It is there in words. 444 00:21:09,939 –> 00:21:12,099 But we’re sometimes slow to understand 445 00:21:12,099 –> 00:21:13,780 and we’re sometimes forgetful 446 00:21:13,780 –> 00:21:17,420 and God wants to seal this into your mind 447 00:21:17,420 –> 00:21:22,219 and into your heart so he gives it to you in a picture. 448 00:21:23,540 –> 00:21:28,099 Take the bread, a life of perfect obedience 449 00:21:28,099 –> 00:21:30,500 has been lived for you. 450 00:21:32,260 –> 00:21:33,319 Take the cup. 451 00:21:34,160 –> 00:21:38,260 A perfect atonement has been made for you 452 00:21:38,260 –> 00:21:41,520 by the shedding of his blood. 453 00:21:42,560 –> 00:21:44,199 So here when you come to the Lord’s Table 454 00:21:44,199 –> 00:21:45,540 here’s the first thing that you’re to do, 455 00:21:45,540 –> 00:21:47,680 you are to fill your mind with this reality 456 00:21:47,680 –> 00:21:50,339 as you look back to the cross. 457 00:21:50,339 –> 00:21:51,760 Be a wonderful blessing 458 00:21:51,760 –> 00:21:54,439 and feeding to your soul as you do this. 459 00:21:55,520 –> 00:21:58,800 Jesus Christ lived a perfect life for you. 460 00:21:58,800 –> 00:22:01,380 His obedience is yours. 461 00:22:02,339 –> 00:22:05,920 He died that sacrificial death 462 00:22:05,920 –> 00:22:09,599 for you, his forgiveness is yours. 463 00:22:09,599 –> 00:22:14,599 This is God speaking to us in words and in pictures. 464 00:22:16,839 –> 00:22:18,380 Look back. 465 00:22:18,380 –> 00:22:22,819 Second, look in, look in. 466 00:22:24,260 –> 00:22:25,540 Look at verse 28. 467 00:22:25,540 –> 00:22:29,900 A man ought to examine himself 468 00:22:29,900 –> 00:22:33,079 before he eats the bread and drinks the cup. 469 00:22:34,579 –> 00:22:39,180 If ever there’s a time for self-examination, this is it. 470 00:22:40,219 –> 00:22:42,439 Some of us are in groups of accountability 471 00:22:42,439 –> 00:22:44,599 when other people ask us questions. 472 00:22:44,599 –> 00:22:47,280 God says whenever you come to the table, 473 00:22:47,280 –> 00:22:52,260 I want you to ask yourself some honest questions. 474 00:22:52,260 –> 00:22:55,739 Let a man examine himself. 475 00:22:55,780 –> 00:23:00,479 An examination obviously involves some questions. 476 00:23:02,619 –> 00:23:04,060 What are the questions? 477 00:23:06,040 –> 00:23:08,180 Obviously it’s important to know the questions 478 00:23:08,180 –> 00:23:12,900 because Paul has said some pretty strong things here. 479 00:23:12,900 –> 00:23:14,380 He talks about people in verse 27 480 00:23:14,380 –> 00:23:16,439 eating and drinking the cup of the Lord 481 00:23:16,439 –> 00:23:20,079 in an unworthy manner being guilty of sinning 482 00:23:20,079 –> 00:23:22,040 against the body and blood of the Lord. 483 00:23:22,040 –> 00:23:24,400 And these are strong words. 484 00:23:25,839 –> 00:23:28,420 And they have left many people 485 00:23:28,420 –> 00:23:31,560 with a great sense of fear about the Lord’s Supper. 486 00:23:31,560 –> 00:23:33,680 Boy, if there’s any chance of me 487 00:23:33,680 –> 00:23:35,959 sinning against the body and blood of the Lord, 488 00:23:35,959 –> 00:23:38,619 I’d better not come to the Lord’s Supper at all. 489 00:23:40,140 –> 00:23:41,939 And so there are many, many Christians 490 00:23:41,939 –> 00:23:45,760 who actually abstain out of a sense of fear 491 00:23:46,939 –> 00:23:48,739 as to what this is all about. 492 00:23:51,380 –> 00:23:54,479 What does it mean to drink in an unworthy manner? 493 00:23:54,520 –> 00:23:56,439 How would I know if I was worthy? 494 00:23:56,439 –> 00:23:57,439 You ask that question, 495 00:23:57,439 –> 00:23:58,920 you’ll almost certainly come to the conclusion 496 00:23:58,920 –> 00:23:59,780 that you’re not. 497 00:24:02,939 –> 00:24:04,420 So, Paul says that 498 00:24:04,420 –> 00:24:08,780 our response to this must be that we examine ourselves. 499 00:24:08,780 –> 00:24:11,680 So what are the questions that we have to ask? 500 00:24:11,680 –> 00:24:12,739 Let me suggest two 501 00:24:12,739 –> 00:24:15,040 that go to the very foundation of the gospel. 502 00:24:16,000 –> 00:24:17,219 The first is this. 503 00:24:17,219 –> 00:24:19,739 Am I believing? 504 00:24:19,739 –> 00:24:21,979 It’s a great question to ask yourself. 505 00:24:22,819 –> 00:24:26,000 Look at the cross, as you look back, 506 00:24:26,000 –> 00:24:27,260 consider what God says 507 00:24:27,260 –> 00:24:29,520 through the picture of the bread and the wine. 508 00:24:29,520 –> 00:24:31,280 Then ask yourself this question, 509 00:24:31,280 –> 00:24:35,900 do I believe in the Son of God who loved me 510 00:24:35,900 –> 00:24:37,260 and gave himself for me? 511 00:24:37,260 –> 00:24:38,219 Am I believing? 512 00:24:39,260 –> 00:24:41,140 If the answer to that question is yes, 513 00:24:41,140 –> 00:24:42,459 you should come to the table 514 00:24:42,459 –> 00:24:44,060 and take the bread and the wine. 515 00:24:45,020 –> 00:24:46,619 If the answer to that question 516 00:24:46,619 –> 00:24:48,219 is no I’m not believing, 517 00:24:48,359 –> 00:24:50,780 or no I’m backslidden, 518 00:24:50,780 –> 00:24:53,839 or no I’ve lost confidence in him, 519 00:24:53,839 –> 00:24:58,180 or no I’ve got more questions than answers right now. 520 00:24:58,180 –> 00:25:01,199 Then you need to ask another question. 521 00:25:03,300 –> 00:25:08,300 That question is am I willing to believe in Christ now? 522 00:25:09,640 –> 00:25:13,140 You see, the table brings you to a point of decision. 523 00:25:13,140 –> 00:25:14,979 This is one of the powerful things about it. 524 00:25:14,979 –> 00:25:17,040 Christ invites you to the table. 525 00:25:17,040 –> 00:25:18,060 You’ve gotta decide 526 00:25:18,380 –> 00:25:19,880 if you’re gonna respond to his invitation, 527 00:25:19,880 –> 00:25:21,339 or not, today. 528 00:25:22,839 –> 00:25:27,560 There’s an opportunity for movement in your soul. 529 00:25:27,560 –> 00:25:30,239 You may have come with all kinds of battles 530 00:25:30,239 –> 00:25:33,160 and perplexities going on raging in your soul 531 00:25:33,160 –> 00:25:34,359 this very morning, 532 00:25:34,359 –> 00:25:37,119 but Jesus Christ reaches out to you 533 00:25:37,119 –> 00:25:38,540 in the word and at the table, 534 00:25:38,540 –> 00:25:41,219 and invites you to believe today. 535 00:25:43,040 –> 00:25:47,959 To bring your struggle and give it to him today. 536 00:25:48,920 –> 00:25:52,500 And you can come today with all your doubts, 537 00:25:52,500 –> 00:25:53,760 with all your fears, 538 00:25:53,760 –> 00:25:56,079 with all your unresolved conflict, 539 00:25:56,079 –> 00:25:57,000 and you can say, 540 00:25:57,000 –> 00:26:00,280 Lord, I need your grace. 541 00:26:01,280 –> 00:26:03,180 I need your help. 542 00:26:03,180 –> 00:26:05,260 I need your love. 543 00:26:07,319 –> 00:26:09,079 I don’t know how I’m gonna get through this. 544 00:26:09,079 –> 00:26:11,280 I can’t answer all the questions, 545 00:26:11,280 –> 00:26:14,599 but I want, as best I know how today, 546 00:26:14,599 –> 00:26:17,319 to put my trust in you. 547 00:26:18,839 –> 00:26:21,979 You can come like Thomas, 548 00:26:21,979 –> 00:26:25,119 the struggling disciple who, 549 00:26:25,119 –> 00:26:26,459 in the presence of Jesus, 550 00:26:26,459 –> 00:26:29,199 said, my Lord and my God. 551 00:26:30,319 –> 00:26:33,140 If you’re willing to come, come. 552 00:26:33,140 –> 00:26:37,380 Come in faith, come and believe. 553 00:26:39,060 –> 00:26:41,920 But if you will not believe, 554 00:26:41,920 –> 00:26:46,000 you should not take the bread nor the wine. 555 00:26:46,959 –> 00:26:51,359 Because if you are not willing to trust Christ 556 00:26:52,680 –> 00:26:55,959 and to place yourself into his hands, 557 00:26:55,959 –> 00:27:00,959 you have separated yourself from his grace. 558 00:27:01,839 –> 00:27:03,020 It is not yours. 559 00:27:04,599 –> 00:27:07,140 So, the Lord’s Supper brings me to a point of decision. 560 00:27:07,140 –> 00:27:10,400 It makes me examine myself. 561 00:27:12,000 –> 00:27:15,319 And the question is not, did I believe 20 years ago? 562 00:27:15,359 –> 00:27:19,160 The question is, am I believing today? 563 00:27:20,239 –> 00:27:22,599 There is an act of faith here. 564 00:27:22,599 –> 00:27:25,859 It’s an expression of trust 565 00:27:25,859 –> 00:27:28,500 in all the uncertainties of life. 566 00:27:28,500 –> 00:27:29,359 Lord, I believe. 567 00:27:31,199 –> 00:27:32,140 Lord, I believe. 568 00:27:33,400 –> 00:27:3,359 You say that today? 569 00:27:36,160 –> 00:27:37,660 Second question, and there are only two. 570 00:27:37,660 –> 00:27:40,479 This is the simplest examination in the world. 571 00:27:40,479 –> 00:27:41,540 Am I believing? 572 00:27:42,640 –> 00:27:44,599 Am I repenting? 573 00:27:44,640 –> 00:27:48,319 Now notice, again, this is present continuous tense 574 00:27:48,319 –> 00:27:52,579 because believing and repenting are lifelong patterns. 575 00:27:53,880 –> 00:27:56,439 If your answer to that question is yes, 576 00:27:57,520 –> 00:28:00,280 then you should come to the Lord’s table 577 00:28:00,280 –> 00:28:02,920 for the Lord’s table is for sinners 578 00:28:02,920 –> 00:28:06,500 who feel their need of the Lord Jesus Christ. 579 00:28:07,760 –> 00:28:10,000 Let me quote you a paragraph from J. C. Ryle, 580 00:28:10,000 –> 00:28:13,540 a very wise pastor and Bishop of the Church of England 581 00:28:13,540 –> 00:28:16,719 in the 18th century, this is what he said, 582 00:28:17,959 –> 00:28:22,540 self-righteous people who think they are saved 583 00:28:22,540 –> 00:28:24,699 by their own works have no business 584 00:28:24,699 –> 00:28:26,199 coming to the Lord’s table. 585 00:28:27,140 –> 00:28:29,599 For what do we declare at the Lord’s Supper? 586 00:28:30,479 –> 00:28:32,619 We publicly profess at the supper 587 00:28:32,619 –> 00:28:35,260 that we have no goodness, righteousness or worthiness 588 00:28:35,260 –> 00:28:38,000 of our own and that all our hope is in Christ. 589 00:28:38,800 –> 00:28:41,359 We publicly profess that we are guilty, 590 00:28:41,359 –> 00:28:45,359 sinful and corrupt, naturally deserving 591 00:28:45,359 –> 00:28:47,040 God’s wrath and condemnation. 592 00:28:48,479 –> 00:28:52,680 Now what has a self-righteous man got to do 593 00:28:52,680 –> 00:28:54,640 with an ordinance like that? 594 00:28:58,119 –> 00:28:59,459 See, remember that. 595 00:28:59,459 –> 00:29:01,359 All the folks are sitting up here who serve 596 00:29:01,359 –> 00:29:03,680 your communion and the pastors sitting up here 597 00:29:03,680 –> 00:29:05,380 are at the table. 598 00:29:05,380 –> 00:29:07,599 What are we saying by participating 599 00:29:07,900 –> 00:29:09,180 in the Supper? 600 00:29:09,180 –> 00:29:12,680 We are saying, not that we’re some paragons 601 00:29:12,680 –> 00:29:16,359 of virtue, but that we stand in need ever 602 00:29:16,359 –> 00:29:19,140 of the mercy and the grace of God. 603 00:29:19,140 –> 00:29:20,900 It’s what we declare in the Supper. 604 00:29:22,560 –> 00:29:23,880 You see, there are some folks who say, 605 00:29:23,880 –> 00:29:26,880 I’m not sure I’m good enough to be receiving 606 00:29:26,880 –> 00:29:27,699 the Lord’s Supper. 607 00:29:27,699 –> 00:29:28,959 That’s nonsense. 608 00:29:30,979 –> 00:29:34,000 The only people who shouldn’t be receiving 609 00:29:34,000 –> 00:29:35,719 the Lord’s Supper are people who think 610 00:29:35,719 –> 00:29:37,180 they’re good enough already. 611 00:29:38,239 –> 00:29:39,719 Cause how could they identify 612 00:29:39,719 –> 00:29:40,800 with a statement that says, 613 00:29:40,800 –> 00:29:42,880 I’m a sinner who stands in need of grace? 614 00:29:45,160 –> 00:29:47,500 If you see yourself as having lived 615 00:29:47,500 –> 00:29:50,199 a worthy life, don’t come to the Lord’s Table. 616 00:29:50,199 –> 00:29:52,199 See, it flips it absolutely on its head. 617 00:29:53,339 –> 00:29:55,540 The table is for sinners who see their need 618 00:29:55,540 –> 00:29:57,579 of the grace and the mercy of God. 619 00:29:57,579 –> 00:30:00,760 And if you see and feel that need, 620 00:30:00,760 –> 00:30:02,459 of grace, then you come. 621 00:30:05,959 –> 00:30:07,579 But, you know, in order to be receiving 622 00:30:08,359 –> 00:30:10,560 His mercy, we need to be ready to give up 623 00:30:10,560 –> 00:30:11,400 our sin. 624 00:30:12,839 –> 00:30:15,160 God is ready to take away any sin 625 00:30:15,160 –> 00:30:17,380 that you have committed, but in order 626 00:30:17,380 –> 00:30:19,560 for Him to take it away, you have to be ready 627 00:30:19,560 –> 00:30:20,479 to let it go. 628 00:30:22,640 –> 00:30:25,800 God will not take away a sin that you 629 00:30:25,800 –> 00:30:28,199 refuse to give up. 630 00:30:29,760 –> 00:30:32,239 So if there is a sin that you refused 631 00:30:32,239 –> 00:30:35,199 to give up, then you should not come 632 00:30:35,199 –> 00:30:36,040 to the table. 633 00:30:37,040 –> 00:30:38,719 Now I didn’t say if there’s a sin 634 00:30:38,719 –> 00:30:41,560 you find difficult to give up because 635 00:30:41,560 –> 00:30:43,280 if you find it difficult, you will come 636 00:30:43,280 –> 00:30:45,000 to God and ask for His mercy and 637 00:30:45,000 –> 00:30:47,839 His help and the strength of His spirit. 638 00:30:47,839 –> 00:30:49,500 What I’m saying is if there is a sin 639 00:30:49,500 –> 00:30:50,680 and you’ve decided in your heart, 640 00:30:50,680 –> 00:30:52,800 I will not give that up 641 00:30:54,239 –> 00:30:58,000 and you know it, don’t take the bread 642 00:30:58,000 –> 00:30:59,959 or the wine because you would be eating 643 00:30:59,959 –> 00:31:02,839 in an unworthy manner because you know 644 00:31:02,839 –> 00:31:04,439 there’s something that God is speaking 645 00:31:04,439 –> 00:31:05,880 to you about in your life and you’re 646 00:31:05,880 –> 00:31:07,520 refusing to deal with it so you’re 647 00:31:07,520 –> 00:31:09,219 in conflict with God and if you’re 648 00:31:09,219 –> 00:31:10,599 in conflict with God, how can you 649 00:31:10,599 –> 00:31:12,359 pretend you’re in fellowship with God? 650 00:31:12,359 –> 00:31:13,219 You’re not. 651 00:31:16,439 –> 00:31:19,199 But how can you remain in that position today? 652 00:31:22,359 –> 00:31:23,180 How can you? 653 00:31:23,180 –> 00:31:28,180 How can you look at the cross of Jesus 654 00:31:28,180 –> 00:31:33,180 and know that it was your sin that 655 00:31:33,520 –> 00:31:37,819 put him there and then refuse to give it up? 656 00:31:38,920 –> 00:31:42,260 Now, the table is a time for looking in 657 00:31:42,260 –> 00:31:44,979 for me examining myself. 658 00:31:44,979 –> 00:31:46,880 Lord, is there something I’m holding onto 659 00:31:46,880 –> 00:31:50,020 that I should not now let me now let it go 660 00:31:50,020 –> 00:31:52,380 that there be nothing between you and me. 661 00:31:52,380 –> 00:31:55,380 Am I repenting? 662 00:31:55,380 –> 00:31:57,300 Now, do you see how coming to the table 663 00:31:57,339 –> 00:31:59,500 is gonna be so strengthening for our souls, 664 00:31:59,500 –> 00:32:02,579 so feeding and nourishing for our inner lives, 665 00:32:02,579 –> 00:32:04,979 because it takes us to the very heart of our faith. 666 00:32:04,979 –> 00:32:06,459 I look back to the cross. 667 00:32:06,459 –> 00:32:09,540 I look inward and I ask about these realities. 668 00:32:09,540 –> 00:32:11,040 Am I believing? 669 00:32:11,040 –> 00:32:12,540 Am I repenting? 670 00:32:13,979 –> 00:32:16,319 Thirdly, look up. 671 00:32:17,800 –> 00:32:19,300 Now the point here is simply that we’re 672 00:32:19,300 –> 00:32:21,780 talking about the Lord’s Supper, 673 00:32:21,780 –> 00:32:23,500 the Supper that goes all the way back 674 00:32:23,500 –> 00:32:26,540 to the night Jesus was betrayed, verse 24. 675 00:32:27,300 –> 00:32:30,180 And the whole point is that it was a meal 676 00:32:30,180 –> 00:32:33,979 that the disciples shared in fellowship with Christ. 677 00:32:33,979 –> 00:32:36,699 And it’s the same for us. 678 00:32:36,699 –> 00:32:39,160 Now obviously, Jesus is not with us physically. 679 00:32:39,160 –> 00:32:41,459 He’s ascended and he’s at the right hand 680 00:32:41,459 –> 00:32:43,099 of the Father in Heaven. 681 00:32:43,099 –> 00:32:46,119 And the way in which we share fellowship with Christ 682 00:32:46,119 –> 00:32:48,900 is, of course, by faith. 683 00:32:48,900 –> 00:32:51,420 And the Lord’s Supper is a wonderful opportunity 684 00:32:51,420 –> 00:32:54,020 for us to come to Him in faith 685 00:32:54,020 –> 00:32:56,380 and find strength for our souls. 686 00:32:56,500 –> 00:32:58,380 Remember that the Lord’s Supper is God 687 00:32:58,380 –> 00:33:02,760 speaking to us so that we may indeed draw near to Him. 688 00:33:03,939 –> 00:33:07,260 And the picture he uses is of eating a meal. 689 00:33:08,579 –> 00:33:10,219 Now, the whole point of the picture is that 690 00:33:10,219 –> 00:33:12,640 just as food sustains the body, 691 00:33:12,640 –> 00:33:15,599 so Christ will sustain the soul. 692 00:33:16,420 –> 00:33:18,219 And we desperately need this. 693 00:33:18,219 –> 00:33:21,699 Some of us have come here and our faith is running low. 694 00:33:21,699 –> 00:33:23,780 It needs to be strengthened. 695 00:33:23,780 –> 00:33:25,699 Our love is running dry. 696 00:33:25,739 –> 00:33:27,760 It needs to be renewed. 697 00:33:27,760 –> 00:33:31,160 Our hope is in shatters and it needs to be rebuilt. 698 00:33:31,959 –> 00:33:33,939 How’s that gonna happen? 699 00:33:33,939 –> 00:33:37,119 You draw near to the risen, exalted, 700 00:33:37,119 –> 00:33:39,180 Lord Jesus Christ by faith. 701 00:33:39,180 –> 00:33:40,979 He’s enthroned in heaven. 702 00:33:40,979 –> 00:33:42,479 His spirit is with you. 703 00:33:42,479 –> 00:33:44,900 He will never leave you, nor will He forsake you. 704 00:33:44,900 –> 00:33:46,859 And as you draw near to Him, 705 00:33:46,859 –> 00:33:51,859 He will speak strength into your soul. 706 00:33:54,000 –> 00:33:55,260 So come and look up. 707 00:33:55,260 –> 00:33:57,439 Look up to Him in faith. 708 00:33:57,439 –> 00:34:00,219 You’ll find new confidence in His love. 709 00:34:00,219 –> 00:34:02,219 New peace in your heart. 710 00:34:02,219 –> 00:34:05,599 New joy in the Holy Spirit. 711 00:34:07,540 –> 00:34:09,199 Imagine going into a restaurant 712 00:34:09,199 –> 00:34:11,239 and you’re seated at a table 713 00:34:11,239 –> 00:34:13,879 and there’s a fine menu that is given to you. 714 00:34:13,879 –> 00:34:15,379 It’s a very fancy restaurant 715 00:34:15,379 –> 00:34:17,699 and there are marvelous pictures of the food. 716 00:34:17,699 –> 00:34:19,820 And because it’s a very posh restaurant, 717 00:34:19,820 –> 00:34:23,179 half of the descriptions of the dishes are in French 718 00:34:23,179 –> 00:34:25,120 and you don’t even understand them. 719 00:34:25,159 –> 00:34:27,199 So the waiter comes 720 00:34:27,199 –> 00:34:31,280 and he tells you what the menu means, 721 00:34:31,280 –> 00:34:33,399 he interprets it to you. 722 00:34:33,399 –> 00:34:35,580 He explains all the words 723 00:34:35,580 –> 00:34:38,860 and he gives you his personal experience 724 00:34:38,860 –> 00:34:40,879 of how good some of these dishes are. 725 00:34:40,879 –> 00:34:43,280 And as you listen to his marvelous explanation, 726 00:34:43,280 –> 00:34:46,580 you say, this is the best waiter we have ever heard. 727 00:34:48,040 –> 00:34:49,399 But surely it would be a tragedy 728 00:34:49,399 –> 00:34:51,520 if you then closed the menu, 729 00:34:51,520 –> 00:34:53,600 got up from the table, 730 00:34:53,600 –> 00:34:56,659 gathered your coat and left the restaurant, 731 00:34:58,040 –> 00:35:01,080 because you did not come there to view the menu, 732 00:35:02,239 –> 00:35:04,040 nor did you come there to hear the waiter 733 00:35:04,040 –> 00:35:05,959 explain all about what it means. 734 00:35:06,919 –> 00:35:10,679 You came to the restaurant to eat the food. 735 00:35:12,520 –> 00:35:15,459 Now the word says, Christ will feed your soul. 736 00:35:15,459 –> 00:35:17,939 The Lord’s supper says the same thing in a picture. 737 00:35:17,939 –> 00:35:19,800 So when you come to the Lord’s table, 738 00:35:19,800 –> 00:35:21,439 order what’s on the menu, 739 00:35:22,399 –> 00:35:26,360 tell Him that you need what He promised in your inner life. 740 00:35:26,360 –> 00:35:28,800 Tell him that you’re hungry for a fresh touch 741 00:35:28,800 –> 00:35:30,120 of his love in your soul. 742 00:35:30,120 –> 00:35:32,020 Tell him you want to see more of his glory, 743 00:35:32,020 –> 00:35:34,360 tell him you need to be renewed in your own faith 744 00:35:34,360 –> 00:35:35,439 and hope and love. 745 00:35:35,439 –> 00:35:37,699 Come to Him, look up, 746 00:35:39,060 –> 00:35:41,120 order what He’s put on the menu, 747 00:35:41,120 –> 00:35:45,060 ask that what He’s promised may be yours. 748 00:35:45,060 –> 00:35:46,600 By faith you will receive. 749 00:35:47,760 –> 00:35:50,320 Fourthly, look around, 750 00:35:52,100 –> 00:35:55,479 look back, look in, look up, look around. 751 00:35:55,479 –> 00:36:00,080 Verse 24, this is my body, which is for you. 752 00:36:00,080 –> 00:36:02,120 And the you is plural. 753 00:36:03,000 –> 00:36:04,800 It’s not just for you, you, you, you, 754 00:36:04,800 –> 00:36:06,239 it’s for you. 755 00:36:06,239 –> 00:36:08,159 It’s for us. 756 00:36:08,159 –> 00:36:11,459 It’s for the community of disciples gathered together 757 00:36:11,459 –> 00:36:13,199 in the presence of Jesus. 758 00:36:14,040 –> 00:36:15,159 And one thing you can never do, 759 00:36:15,159 –> 00:36:16,659 is have communion on your own. 760 00:36:18,280 –> 00:36:19,520 Communion is together, 761 00:36:19,580 –> 00:36:21,780 the Lord’s supper is for the family. 762 00:36:21,780 –> 00:36:24,919 It is the Lord’s family gathering. 763 00:36:24,919 –> 00:36:27,520 It’s like thanksgiving to the Lord. 764 00:36:28,679 –> 00:36:30,840 A father, a mother, a grandmother, a grandfather 765 00:36:30,840 –> 00:36:33,459 love to have the whole family together 766 00:36:33,459 –> 00:36:35,679 around the table at thanksgiving, 767 00:36:35,679 –> 00:36:37,219 and thanksgiving dinner 768 00:36:38,459 –> 00:36:41,139 is more than getting stuffed with turkey, isn’t it? 769 00:36:41,139 –> 00:36:43,639 It’s more than satisfying a physical appetite. 770 00:36:43,639 –> 00:36:46,080 It’s about the joy 771 00:36:46,080 –> 00:36:48,520 of the family being together, 772 00:36:48,600 –> 00:36:50,000 and there’s no greater joy 773 00:36:50,000 –> 00:36:51,479 than to the father and the mother 774 00:36:51,479 –> 00:36:53,520 or the grandfather and the grandmother 775 00:36:53,520 –> 00:36:55,760 to see them all together, 776 00:36:55,760 –> 00:36:58,699 the youngest to the oldest around the table. 777 00:37:00,959 –> 00:37:02,419 And that’s what Christ wants, 778 00:37:03,500 –> 00:37:05,719 his family together around the table. 779 00:37:05,719 –> 00:37:07,439 This is where the walls come down. 780 00:37:09,600 –> 00:37:11,879 This is where there are no young nor old, 781 00:37:11,879 –> 00:37:16,159 just those who receive from the hand of Christ. 782 00:37:16,159 –> 00:37:18,100 No black nor white, no rich nor poor, 783 00:37:18,100 –> 00:37:20,760 no Jew nor Gentile, no pastor or lay leader, 784 00:37:20,760 –> 00:37:23,820 no Bible scholar or Bible novice. 785 00:37:23,820 –> 00:37:25,840 All receive the same invitation, 786 00:37:25,840 –> 00:37:27,959 we all come to the same Savior, 787 00:37:27,959 –> 00:37:30,219 we all come with the same need, 788 00:37:30,219 –> 00:37:32,820 we all come to the same supply. 789 00:37:34,139 –> 00:37:36,280 So at the table, look around. 790 00:37:36,280 –> 00:37:39,139 Give thanks for the family of God. 791 00:37:40,000 –> 00:37:43,280 Pray for someone who is near to you in the congregation, 792 00:37:43,280 –> 00:37:45,800 for God’s blessing on them. 793 00:37:45,879 –> 00:37:47,219 Ask, perhaps that God would give you 794 00:37:47,219 –> 00:37:49,620 a word of encouragement, to say to someone near to you, 795 00:37:49,620 –> 00:37:51,459 or someone who he brings to your mind, 796 00:37:51,459 –> 00:37:54,520 that we may bless one another and bring joy 797 00:37:54,520 –> 00:37:58,179 to our Father as we gather around his table. 798 00:38:00,479 –> 00:38:03,100 And lastly, look forward, 799 00:38:03,100 –> 00:38:05,879 for whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, 800 00:38:05,879 –> 00:38:09,719 you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. 801 00:38:11,280 –> 00:38:14,479 We proclaim the Lord’s death. 802 00:38:14,500 –> 00:38:16,820 And we do it until he comes. 803 00:38:20,780 –> 00:38:22,959 You’re a visitor to this Church, 804 00:38:22,959 –> 00:38:25,639 not yet come to a point of faith. 805 00:38:25,639 –> 00:38:29,500 You feel free to look around during the communion service. 806 00:38:29,500 –> 00:38:33,179 Because everyone of us, who takes the bread and the cup, 807 00:38:33,179 –> 00:38:35,260 we’re saying something to you. 808 00:38:35,260 –> 00:38:38,600 We’re proclaiming the Lord’s death. 809 00:38:38,600 –> 00:38:40,699 We’re not saying we’re good enough for God. 810 00:38:40,699 –> 00:38:42,100 We’re saying precisely the opposite. 811 00:38:42,100 –> 00:38:43,739 We’re saying we’re not good enough for God, 812 00:38:43,840 –> 00:38:46,300 and our only hope is in Jesus Christ 813 00:38:46,300 –> 00:38:48,300 and in his sacrifice for us. 814 00:38:48,300 –> 00:38:51,239 And we’re proclaiming it because that sacrifice 815 00:38:51,239 –> 00:38:54,159 is sufficient for you too, if you will come 816 00:38:54,159 –> 00:38:56,219 and you will receive, if you will repent 817 00:38:56,219 –> 00:38:57,419 and if you will believe. 818 00:39:00,239 –> 00:39:02,000 Died for every person. 819 00:39:04,179 –> 00:39:05,379 He died for you. 820 00:39:07,120 –> 00:39:10,020 Why would you not today come also to believe 821 00:39:10,020 –> 00:39:13,179 and to receive the benefits of life 822 00:39:13,179 –> 00:39:14,639 that flow from his death? 823 00:39:16,280 –> 00:39:18,899 And we proclaim this death until he comes. 824 00:39:19,760 –> 00:39:21,080 Just looking forward isn’t it. 825 00:39:21,080 –> 00:39:23,580 We look back, we look in, we look up, 826 00:39:23,580 –> 00:39:25,360 we look around, we look forward 827 00:39:25,360 –> 00:39:30,360 because we meet in this way until he comes. 828 00:39:31,860 –> 00:39:34,340 And then when he comes or when he calls 829 00:39:34,340 –> 00:39:36,120 for one of us individually, 830 00:39:36,120 –> 00:39:38,239 faith will be turned to sight 831 00:39:38,320 –> 00:39:41,239 and you will find yourself translated 832 00:39:41,239 –> 00:39:43,479 into the worship of heaven. 833 00:39:46,239 –> 00:39:48,219 And in the presence of Jesus, 834 00:39:50,040 –> 00:39:52,800 you will enter all that he died to open 835 00:39:52,800 –> 00:39:56,639 for you for all eternity until he comes.