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Welcome to Mystery and Mercy,

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our short new preaching series that starts today.

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That title comes from a very important theological work

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by a Puritan scholar by the name of Thomas Watson.

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Watson was a remarkable man who was educated

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at Cambridge University back in the 17th century

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and spent most of his life teaching and writing

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in and around the city of London

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during the English Civil War.

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He wrote a relatively short book that had a very long title.

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It's called The Holy Eucharist

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or The Mystery of the Lord's Supper Explained.

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I like when back in the day they just gave titles

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that said this is what the book is about, right?

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That's what it was.

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And at the outset of his book he wrote this

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and this is where we get the title

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of our sermon series from.

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He wrote this.

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There is in the institution of the Lord's Supper

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a mystery of wonder and a mystery of mercy.

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Now I found Watson's work in the past

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very enlightening and very challenging

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so I'm gonna quote him a number of times

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both today and throughout this series as well.

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I mentioned in my pastoral video this week

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if you had a chance to watch it that in my opinion

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from what I've seen in my number of years in the church

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that modern day evangelicals don't really get communion.

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They just really don't understand it very well.

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In recent decades the trend especially in our larger

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and more I guess you'd call trendy churches,

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hipster churches, whatever it might be,

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the trend has been to make communion less and less formal

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and to make it more and more accessible

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to anybody who wants to come and participate in it.

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And I find both of those trends lamentable.

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In fact I would say we should be doing quite the opposite.

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We should be seeking to enter more deeply

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into the sacred nature of the Lord's table

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and doing all we can to ensure

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that the communion table is guarded against improper use

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and practice.

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So we're gonna talk a lot about those things

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over the next few weeks.

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My aim in this four week series is really to do two things.

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First of all to help us celebrate Reformation Sunday

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which is next week, right, October 31st.

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To help us celebrate that because the Reformation

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is our spiritual heritage.

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And to do that what we're gonna do is focus

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in these four weeks on the communion table.

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What exactly is it all about?

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And as some of you know, if you've studied the Reformation,

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you know that the reformers even amongst themselves

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didn't always agree on what was transpiring

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at the communion table or how we should view it.

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So that's the first thing.

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Let's celebrate Reformation Sunday.

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Let's celebrate the season

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because it is important to our heritage.

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My second goal is to go really deep

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into what actually happens

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when a church family gathers together at the Lord's table

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and participates in the bread and the cup.

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What is the spiritual transaction that takes place?

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Is it a memorial?

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Is it more than that?

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We're gonna talk about all these things.

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And as we look closer at it,

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my hope is to move this church family

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further away from that overly casual evangelical view

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of the table.

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The whoever wants to take it can take it whenever you want

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type of view of the table.

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And to move us towards a more serious, more reformed view

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of communion.

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A view by the way that lines up with scripture.

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And a view that lines up with the incredibly deep

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and practical insights of both the early church fathers

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and the reformers.

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Because we have a lot of historical data to go off of.

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Speaking of that,

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you knew I was gonna bring a timeline today, right?

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I cannot promise maps in this brief series.

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Although I may be able to squeeze one of them in

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when we get to a map of Europe or something like that.

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But we've gotta have a timeline.

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Because I'm gonna be talking about some of these eras

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throughout this particular series.

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So as you look at it here,

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just some basic dates,

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obviously 33, the year of the cross.

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100 is generally what we think about

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in terms of the end of the apostolic period.

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Whenever John the apostle,

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the last apostle, living apostle dies,

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somewhere around 100.

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313 is important because that's the date of

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Constantine's Edict of Milan.

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Where the church was basically given approval

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to exist within the Roman Empire.

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Generally we think of about 500

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as the period of the rise of the Roman Catholic system.

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And it lasts for about a thousand years as you can see there.

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And it's often referred to as the Medieval period

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or the Dark Ages.

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But it is dominated by the rise of

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the Roman Catholic system

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and the hierarchy that we see there.

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And then of course 1517 is the year that Luther

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comes and pounds his 95 theses on the door.

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Generally speaking we talk about 1648,

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the Peace of Westphalia.

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Nobody knows about that unless you're a real nerd.

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If you know that, come talk to me afterwards.

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We'll celebrate together.

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That is generally considered the end

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of the Reformation period.

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So I'm gonna be referring to these eras a lot.

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Especially as I talk about the church fathers.

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And I know that can be broken up

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into a number of subcategories.

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But we speak of the early church fathers.

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And then going forward a thousand years,

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we reconnect with these folks we call the reformers.

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So here's where I plan to go in this series.

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Subject to of course the Holy Spirit's leading

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in the coming weeks.

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Today is gonna be really just about laying a foundation.

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I wanna do an exposition of just a couple of verses

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that come out of the New Testament

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that talk about the institution of the Lord's Supper

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from Matthew 26.

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From that so called upper room scene, right?

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We call it the upper room where Jesus sits down

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with his disciples, his closest friends,

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and shares a meal with them.

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Next week on Reformation Sunday,

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what we wanna do is dive into how the doctrine

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of communion was originally understood by the apostles.

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And then how it sort of evolved through the church fathers

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to how the Catholic church began to pervert it.

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And then how the reformers tried to bring it back,

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but then disagreed on what it meant.

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And we'll look at Luther and Zwingli and Calvin and others.

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So that'll be, next week will be very historical,

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but we'll really break down in a serious way

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what the doctrine looks like from the reformer's perspective.

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Then in weeks three and four,

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we're gonna get super practical.

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Because we're gonna talk about what does Oak Hill believe

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about the Eucharist?

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What do we believe about the table?

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Which stream of Reformation doctrine do we ascribe to here?

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How does that practically play out at Oak Hill?

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And then moving forward as a body,

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how can we avoid making mistakes in observing the table?

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And how can we find greater unity in the body?

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Something that will honor the Lord and strengthen our faith.

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So that's sort of the layout as we go along.

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I mentioned in my video this week,

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try to be here all four Sundays.

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If you miss one, make sure you go back to the YouTube page

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and listen because they're gonna build on each other.

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I'm not gonna have time to constantly overlap

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and repeat what I said the previous week.

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So make plans to be with us.

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All right, today we need to start with some definitions.

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We're laying a foundation,

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and when it comes to theology, words matter.

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Isn't that true?

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In the case of our subject matter,

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there have been a number of names and titles and words

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that have been used to describe it.

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I've already used, I think, four of them this morning.

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I've talked about communion, the Lord's Supper,

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the Lord's Table, and the Eucharist.

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Now, those are all interchangeable terms.

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They're all interchangeable terms,

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but I know that that last one is hard for some of you

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because if you come out of a Roman Catholic background,

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that word might trigger you in some ways, some bad memories

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if you're what we call a recovering Catholic.

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In fact, though, we ought not be triggered by it.

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We ought not to be scared of it

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because it's really just the Greek word for Thanksgiving.

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It's the Greek word for Thanksgiving.

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In fact, it comes from a combination of two Greek words,

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you, which means good, and charis, which means grace.

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So the idea of the Eucharist is really just a good grace

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that is given to us from the hand of God.

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So we sort of need to recapture language.

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When it gets misused or used improperly,

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sometimes it's good in the church

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that we recapture language

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and make sure that we straighten it out.

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Now, as far as we can tell,

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the early church didn't use any fancy terminology

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when it spoke of communion.

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In fact, the phrase that we see in Scripture

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is simply the breaking of bread.

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That's what they called it.

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We see that a number of times in the New Testament.

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And that breaking of bread was always attached

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to a simple gathering of members of the church

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who came together for a regular meal,

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and it was sort of attached to that.

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We know that those meals that happen often

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in the early church from first century writings,

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we find out that they were referred to as agape feasts,

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or we would say love feasts,

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but I have been told I cannot use that phrase in church.

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Is that true?

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By some of you, I don't say love feast.

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It just doesn't sound good in today's culture.

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But that's literally what the church called it

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back in the day, agape feasts.

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But then over time, even more names began to be used.

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The early church fathers, the reformers,

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they consistently used that term, Eucharist,

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and they did so without any reservation

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because they believed it was a time of thanksgiving.

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The term Lord's Supper was taken by the church even later

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because of specific language that Paul uses

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in 1 Corinthians 11, verse 20.

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There's a phrase in the Greek

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which can literally be translated Lord's Supper,

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or maybe more accurately, the Lord's Banquet.

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That's 1 Corinthians 11, 20.

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And then the title communion.

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For most of us, for me, that's what I grew up with, right?

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With a little bit of a Presbyterian background,

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I just learned the term communion,

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and that became a favorite term

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because it comes from a Latin word

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that just means fellowship, right?

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It means mutual sharing,

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and who doesn't love fellowship and mutual sharing, right?

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So all those terms, I just want you to know

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that all those terms have validity,

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and they're all gonna be used

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throughout this series interchangeably.

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Now, the other word that's gonna come up in this series,

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and this one has been practically banned

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in the modern evangelical church.

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So I say it with great fear and trepidation.

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It's been banned not because of what it actually means,

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but again, because of how the Roman Catholic Church

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has sort of corrupted it by improper use,

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and I'm speaking of the word sacrament.

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Audible gas from the audience.

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Sacrament.

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In the Roman Catholic system,

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a sacrament is a very specific means

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of acquiring God's grace by doing certain good works

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assigned to us by Rome.

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That is an idea that we wholeheartedly reject.

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That is not a biblical concept,

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and we'll delve more into that next Sunday.

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But the actual word sacrament

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comes down to us in English

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as a word that simply means divine mystery.

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That's really all the word means.

265
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It's a transliteration of a Greek word

266
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that means mystery, and it's come down as this word,

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sacramentum in Latin, but sacrament to us.

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So it's not inappropriate to refer to baptism

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and the Lord's Supper as the two New Testament sacraments.

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Both of them were instituted by Christ himself.

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Both of them have been given to the church

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as mysteries of the faith.

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And even that word mystery sometimes makes us feel

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a little uncomfortable, doesn't it?

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Because it's not something we can really pin down,

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but that is literally the meaning of the word sacrament.

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Again, both the early church fathers and the reformers

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referred to communion as a sacrament,

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and they did it without hesitation.

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So again, we shouldn't allow the Roman Catholic Church

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to steal language and appropriate it incorrectly

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and then deprive us of using a word

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that actually has deep meaning behind it.

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So where in the New Testament do we find

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this idea of communion?

286
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Well, surprisingly, it's not found

287
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in all that many places, right?

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We find it in all four gospels,

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in that scene in the upper room,

290
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the sacrament of communion being instituted by Christ.

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Now John, John focuses on some different things,

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not so much the table ministry, but some different things,

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but all four of them refer to that evening of the Passover.

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Then you'll find an allusion, again,

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to this breaking of bread in Acts chapter two.

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You'll find it again in Acts chapter 20,

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and then we get a treasure trove of information

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from the apostle Paul, don't we?

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In 1 Corinthians 10 and 11.

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What's interesting about that is in chapter 11,

301
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Paul not only recounts the story,

302
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the narrative of the upper room,

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but he also gives us a whole bunch of ways

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that we can mess it up.

305
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And that really is the theme of the first letter

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of the Corinthians, right?

307
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All the ways that we have messed up church life.

308
00:12:25,440 --> 00:12:26,880
So that's really where we find stuff.

309
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Now, what is it that we learn then from the data

310
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that we have in the New Testament about communion?

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First of all, we learn that it is a sacred

312
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and perpetual ordinance that's been given to the church.

313
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It's to be observed, it's to be participated in

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until the time that Christ returns, amen?

315
00:12:44,360 --> 00:12:46,800
Second, there's a measure of freedom given to the church

316
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because we don't have a whole lot of details

317
00:12:48,720 --> 00:12:51,800
and parameters like where should we celebrate this?

318
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I mean, do we have to recreate an upper room?

319
00:12:54,080 --> 00:12:55,120
You know, where do we do it?

320
00:12:55,120 --> 00:12:56,680
When do we do it?

321
00:12:56,680 --> 00:12:58,940
Does it have to be on a Sunday?

322
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How many times?

323
00:12:59,780 --> 00:13:00,800
Should it be weekly?

324
00:13:00,800 --> 00:13:02,780
Some churches do it multiple times a week.

325
00:13:02,780 --> 00:13:06,080
Some churches do it once or twice a year, quarterly.

326
00:13:06,080 --> 00:13:07,500
There's all kinds of things.

327
00:13:07,500 --> 00:13:09,000
What kind of elements should we use?

328
00:13:09,000 --> 00:13:11,000
Does the bread have to be matzah, right?

329
00:13:11,000 --> 00:13:13,680
So there's all these different traditions

330
00:13:13,680 --> 00:13:16,320
that churches have, but they're not really prescribed

331
00:13:16,320 --> 00:13:18,800
in Scripture, so there's a measure of freedom in that.

332
00:13:18,800 --> 00:13:20,920
And then lastly, we learn that there's a ton of mistakes

333
00:13:20,920 --> 00:13:23,200
that we can make, a ton of mistakes.

334
00:13:23,200 --> 00:13:25,440
And we wanna pay close attention to those things

335
00:13:25,440 --> 00:13:28,400
because it's His Supper, and we wanna make sure

336
00:13:28,400 --> 00:13:31,060
that it remains undefiled when we come to the table.

337
00:13:31,060 --> 00:13:33,560
So before we dive into our text now,

338
00:13:35,120 --> 00:13:37,320
can I go on a little bit of a rant?

339
00:13:37,320 --> 00:13:38,440
I know you guys love Jeff's.

340
00:13:38,440 --> 00:13:40,440
I actually literally have like a slide,

341
00:13:40,440 --> 00:13:42,960
and Grant, you could write me a little jingle.

342
00:13:42,960 --> 00:13:44,680
Pastor Jeff's rant of the day.

343
00:13:44,680 --> 00:13:48,240
Just a little bit of a rant to set the tone

344
00:13:48,240 --> 00:13:49,920
for this preaching series.

345
00:13:51,580 --> 00:13:54,760
You may have noticed this, but over my lifetime,

346
00:13:54,760 --> 00:13:58,400
I've observed a few things about the church as a whole,

347
00:13:58,400 --> 00:13:59,800
the church in general.

348
00:13:59,800 --> 00:14:02,160
First of all, that we tend to group up

349
00:14:02,160 --> 00:14:04,640
in what I like to call tribes.

350
00:14:04,640 --> 00:14:07,600
Tribes based on our vision of how the Christian faith

351
00:14:07,600 --> 00:14:09,560
should be understood and how the Christian faith

352
00:14:09,560 --> 00:14:11,840
should be practiced and lived out.

353
00:14:11,840 --> 00:14:16,240
Second is those tribes, we are very, very reactionary.

354
00:14:16,240 --> 00:14:18,000
We look around at what other people are doing

355
00:14:18,000 --> 00:14:20,400
and we react very strongly to it.

356
00:14:20,400 --> 00:14:23,520
And so we go out of our way then to deem some things

357
00:14:23,520 --> 00:14:25,400
as right and acceptable and other things

358
00:14:25,400 --> 00:14:26,800
as wrong as contemptible.

359
00:14:26,800 --> 00:14:30,480
And then we are very quick to dismiss anybody

360
00:14:30,480 --> 00:14:33,920
who disagrees with us or who doesn't toe the line perfectly.

361
00:14:33,920 --> 00:14:36,960
We will cast them out of our tribes, so to speak.

362
00:14:36,960 --> 00:14:39,440
And then third, rather than being patient

363
00:14:39,440 --> 00:14:41,840
and slow in the way we move and discerning

364
00:14:41,840 --> 00:14:44,560
and making minor adjustments when necessary,

365
00:14:44,560 --> 00:14:47,080
we prefer to declare giant convictions

366
00:14:47,080 --> 00:14:49,680
and swing the pendulum from all the way over here

367
00:14:49,680 --> 00:14:50,920
to all the way over there.

368
00:14:51,800 --> 00:14:55,060
We just don't, we lack balance in so many ways.

369
00:14:55,060 --> 00:14:57,060
So case in point, and this is why I bring this up

370
00:14:57,060 --> 00:14:58,980
as we talk about communion,

371
00:14:58,980 --> 00:15:01,120
the conservative Bible teaching tribe

372
00:15:01,120 --> 00:15:03,000
of the evangelical church in the West,

373
00:15:03,000 --> 00:15:05,560
which we have been a part of traditionally,

374
00:15:05,560 --> 00:15:07,900
we tend to look with a very skeptical eye

375
00:15:07,900 --> 00:15:09,760
towards church history.

376
00:15:09,760 --> 00:15:11,600
That's the past.

377
00:15:11,600 --> 00:15:13,540
We're modern day evangelicals.

378
00:15:13,540 --> 00:15:15,760
We look skeptically, like side eye,

379
00:15:15,760 --> 00:15:17,640
at some of the things that we see in church history.

380
00:15:17,640 --> 00:15:19,480
And by the way, rightly so in the case

381
00:15:19,480 --> 00:15:22,440
of the Roman Catholic Church because of their errors,

382
00:15:22,440 --> 00:15:25,380
but the reaction has often been this.

383
00:15:25,380 --> 00:15:27,060
I'm gonna use a strong word.

384
00:15:27,060 --> 00:15:31,040
The reaction has been to sanitize the life of the church

385
00:15:31,040 --> 00:15:33,260
in modern evangelicalism.

386
00:15:33,260 --> 00:15:35,440
To sanitize the church as much as possible

387
00:15:35,440 --> 00:15:38,400
so that we don't look or sound like Rome

388
00:15:38,400 --> 00:15:40,440
or like anything historical at all.

389
00:15:41,760 --> 00:15:45,360
Rather than save what should be saved from the past,

390
00:15:45,360 --> 00:15:46,840
or cut out what shouldn't be saved,

391
00:15:46,840 --> 00:15:49,480
we've swung the pendulum from one side

392
00:15:49,480 --> 00:15:51,120
and swung it all the way over here and said,

393
00:15:51,120 --> 00:15:54,120
let's just toss all of it out and let's appear,

394
00:15:54,120 --> 00:15:58,120
let's look and sound like modern evangelicals.

395
00:15:58,120 --> 00:16:00,960
So today we've done two things which I find regrettable.

396
00:16:00,960 --> 00:16:03,080
First of all, we've sterilized life in the church

397
00:16:03,080 --> 00:16:03,920
in many ways.

398
00:16:03,920 --> 00:16:06,040
Second, we have made the Christian life

399
00:16:06,040 --> 00:16:08,740
primarily an intellectual pursuit.

400
00:16:10,400 --> 00:16:11,980
We've sterilized the church

401
00:16:11,980 --> 00:16:14,480
and we've made it primarily intellectual.

402
00:16:14,480 --> 00:16:17,660
So for example, today's evangelical church

403
00:16:17,660 --> 00:16:20,300
isn't big on things like architecture

404
00:16:20,300 --> 00:16:22,320
in the buildings that we build.

405
00:16:22,320 --> 00:16:23,160
What do we build?

406
00:16:23,160 --> 00:16:25,960
Big square boxes, right?

407
00:16:25,960 --> 00:16:28,940
We just don't care that much about architecture.

408
00:16:28,940 --> 00:16:32,400
We don't care so much about ancient hymns of the faith

409
00:16:32,400 --> 00:16:33,800
because the lyrics are difficult.

410
00:16:33,800 --> 00:16:35,680
Even though we say, oh, they might be rich and all that,

411
00:16:35,680 --> 00:16:38,080
but they're so old, they're difficult to sing.

412
00:16:38,080 --> 00:16:40,240
We're not interested, give us praise choruses

413
00:16:40,240 --> 00:16:43,440
that we can just repeat over and over and over again.

414
00:16:43,440 --> 00:16:45,760
We don't seek after the beauty of art

415
00:16:45,760 --> 00:16:47,920
in our decor, in our walls anymore.

416
00:16:47,920 --> 00:16:49,760
We don't speak of things like liturgy.

417
00:16:49,760 --> 00:16:52,360
That's become sort of a word we don't talk about

418
00:16:52,360 --> 00:16:53,440
in the modern church.

419
00:16:53,440 --> 00:16:55,400
We don't like to read creeds and confessions.

420
00:16:55,400 --> 00:16:57,280
Oh, that's passive.

421
00:16:57,280 --> 00:16:59,660
We might have affirmed that that's good sound doctrine,

422
00:16:59,660 --> 00:17:03,620
but we don't read those things in the modern day church.

423
00:17:03,620 --> 00:17:05,640
Most things in today's church are viewed through the lens

424
00:17:05,640 --> 00:17:08,300
of what is casual, right?

425
00:17:08,300 --> 00:17:09,980
What is familiar?

426
00:17:09,980 --> 00:17:11,680
What is purely functional in nature?

427
00:17:11,680 --> 00:17:14,880
We would prefer to go to a coffee house type atmosphere

428
00:17:14,880 --> 00:17:17,360
or a shopping mall type atmosphere

429
00:17:17,360 --> 00:17:21,040
rather than enter into any type of sacred space.

430
00:17:21,040 --> 00:17:23,000
We come to church looking to be visually

431
00:17:23,000 --> 00:17:25,240
and intellectually entertained

432
00:17:25,240 --> 00:17:27,300
rather than gathering in anticipation

433
00:17:27,300 --> 00:17:30,600
that God is gonna move supernaturally among us.

434
00:17:30,600 --> 00:17:32,960
We think more in terms of individuality.

435
00:17:32,960 --> 00:17:36,860
My walk with Jesus and we think corporately as a body.

436
00:17:36,860 --> 00:17:40,780
We don't speak much of things like affections or emotions.

437
00:17:40,780 --> 00:17:43,140
We only search after things that we can sort of control

438
00:17:43,140 --> 00:17:45,000
with our minds.

439
00:17:45,000 --> 00:17:46,360
In fact, we're a little bit uncomfortable

440
00:17:46,360 --> 00:17:48,200
even with some very biblical concepts

441
00:17:48,200 --> 00:17:51,200
like abide in the vine or walk in the spirit.

442
00:17:51,200 --> 00:17:53,640
What do those things really mean?

443
00:17:53,640 --> 00:17:55,280
For so many modern evangelicals,

444
00:17:55,280 --> 00:17:58,120
we're like, that's too intangible for me.

445
00:17:58,120 --> 00:18:00,440
That's too mysterious.

446
00:18:00,440 --> 00:18:01,880
Give me some new factor idea

447
00:18:01,880 --> 00:18:04,280
that I can affirm with my mind that I can stand on

448
00:18:04,280 --> 00:18:06,320
because as Bible-believing Christians,

449
00:18:06,320 --> 00:18:08,160
that's really what we're looking for.

450
00:18:10,040 --> 00:18:12,480
Now, here's the question in all that.

451
00:18:12,480 --> 00:18:13,680
Are we missing anything?

452
00:18:15,440 --> 00:18:16,900
Are we balanced in this thing?

453
00:18:16,900 --> 00:18:19,600
Or have we just tossed all the stuff from the past?

454
00:18:19,600 --> 00:18:22,340
We've tossed everything related to church history

455
00:18:22,340 --> 00:18:24,520
and we've just wanted to be these modern people

456
00:18:24,520 --> 00:18:25,860
who hang out in a coffee house

457
00:18:25,860 --> 00:18:28,220
and throw up our hands and sing to Jesus.

458
00:18:28,220 --> 00:18:30,820
Are we missing something in our Christian walk?

459
00:18:30,820 --> 00:18:34,380
Something that the early Christians insisted on,

460
00:18:34,380 --> 00:18:36,820
things that the reformers insisted on

461
00:18:36,820 --> 00:18:40,780
was a vital part of the Christian life.

462
00:18:40,780 --> 00:18:43,780
In particular, what have we done with the Lord's Supper?

463
00:18:43,780 --> 00:18:45,780
That's really the key here.

464
00:18:45,780 --> 00:18:48,820
Are we missing some of its true meaning?

465
00:18:48,820 --> 00:18:50,660
Have we taken all the mystery out of it

466
00:18:50,660 --> 00:18:53,900
and therefore emptied it of its power?

467
00:18:53,900 --> 00:18:55,780
Or have we just not understood

468
00:18:55,780 --> 00:18:58,580
it? Those are all valid questions

469
00:18:58,580 --> 00:19:00,660
and things that we want to explore in this series.

470
00:19:00,660 --> 00:19:02,460
So grab your Bibles.

471
00:19:02,460 --> 00:19:04,260
That was my rant, by the way, thank you.

472
00:19:06,260 --> 00:19:09,060
Let's go to Matthew 26.

473
00:19:11,580 --> 00:19:15,220
By the way, my biggest challenge in a series like this

474
00:19:16,540 --> 00:19:18,940
is to not say too much in the first sermon.

475
00:19:20,180 --> 00:19:23,500
It's one of those things where you can't teach on community

476
00:19:23,500 --> 00:19:26,020
in one sermon, but you want to get a whole bunch of stuff in,

477
00:19:26,020 --> 00:19:27,420
but you can't, so you gotta wait,

478
00:19:27,420 --> 00:19:29,780
you gotta save some stuff for other sermons.

479
00:19:29,780 --> 00:19:32,540
But I guarantee you, some of you guys are gonna hear

480
00:19:32,540 --> 00:19:35,220
words that I use or phrases that I use today

481
00:19:35,220 --> 00:19:36,900
or concepts that I describe today,

482
00:19:36,900 --> 00:19:38,460
and you're gonna say, hold on a second,

483
00:19:38,460 --> 00:19:40,100
I have questions about that.

484
00:19:40,980 --> 00:19:41,820
I guarantee it.

485
00:19:41,820 --> 00:19:43,980
You can say, wait, I need that explained some more.

486
00:19:43,980 --> 00:19:45,620
You gotta come back.

487
00:19:45,620 --> 00:19:46,700
And that's not just a teaser

488
00:19:46,700 --> 00:19:48,580
to make sure you come back next week.

489
00:19:48,580 --> 00:19:50,780
I'm just telling you, I can't say everything I wanna say

490
00:19:50,780 --> 00:19:52,340
in one sermon, but I guarantee you,

491
00:19:52,340 --> 00:19:54,020
everything I wanna say in one Sunday.

492
00:19:54,020 --> 00:19:55,580
Does that make sense?

493
00:19:55,580 --> 00:19:56,420
Okay, good.

494
00:19:58,140 --> 00:20:01,540
The key verses for today are really verses 26, 27, and 28,

495
00:20:01,540 --> 00:20:03,100
but I wanna back up to verse 20.

496
00:20:03,100 --> 00:20:05,820
Let's start with Matthew's recording

497
00:20:05,820 --> 00:20:08,460
of the institution of the Lord's Supper in verse 20.

498
00:20:09,420 --> 00:20:13,980
It says, when evening came, Jesus was reclining at the table

499
00:20:13,980 --> 00:20:16,220
with the 12 disciples.

500
00:20:16,220 --> 00:20:18,340
As they were eating, he said, truly I say to you

501
00:20:18,340 --> 00:20:22,380
that one of you will betray me, being deeply grieved,

502
00:20:22,380 --> 00:20:26,180
they each one began to say to him, surely not I, Lord.

503
00:20:26,180 --> 00:20:28,860
And he answered, he who dipped his hand with me in the bowl

504
00:20:28,860 --> 00:20:30,900
is the one who will betray me.

505
00:20:31,900 --> 00:20:35,420
The son of man is to go, just as it is written of him,

506
00:20:35,420 --> 00:20:38,220
but woe to that man whom the son of man is betrayed.

507
00:20:38,220 --> 00:20:39,580
It would have been good for that man

508
00:20:39,580 --> 00:20:42,060
if he had not been born.

509
00:20:42,060 --> 00:20:43,740
And Judas, who was betraying him, said,

510
00:20:43,740 --> 00:20:48,260
surely it's not I, Rabbi, not Lord, Rabbi,

511
00:20:48,260 --> 00:20:50,420
Jesus said to him, you've said it yourself.

512
00:20:51,740 --> 00:20:54,180
Now here we go, verse 26, key verses.

513
00:20:54,180 --> 00:20:57,300
While they were eating, Jesus took some bread,

514
00:20:57,300 --> 00:20:59,460
and after a blessing, he broke it and gave it

515
00:20:59,460 --> 00:21:03,260
to the disciples and said, take and eat, this is my body.

516
00:21:04,340 --> 00:21:06,060
And when he had taken a cup and given thanks,

517
00:21:06,060 --> 00:21:08,460
he gave it to them, saying, drink from it, all of you,

518
00:21:08,460 --> 00:21:10,900
for this is my blood of the covenant,

519
00:21:10,900 --> 00:21:14,540
which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

520
00:21:14,540 --> 00:21:16,700
But I say to you, I will not drink this fruit of the vine

521
00:21:16,700 --> 00:21:19,940
from now on until that day when I drink it new with you

522
00:21:19,940 --> 00:21:21,380
in my Father's kingdom.

523
00:21:22,220 --> 00:21:23,740
And after singing a hymn, they went out

524
00:21:23,740 --> 00:21:25,700
to the Mount of Olives.

525
00:21:25,700 --> 00:21:29,540
Okay, so we're gonna spend just actually a decent amount

526
00:21:29,540 --> 00:21:32,340
of time here just looking at some important insights

527
00:21:32,340 --> 00:21:35,460
in those three verses, because there's actually a lot there

528
00:21:35,460 --> 00:21:36,300
that we need to pull out.

529
00:21:36,300 --> 00:21:38,620
Let's start with the when question.

530
00:21:38,620 --> 00:21:42,080
When did Jesus institute the communion meal?

531
00:21:43,100 --> 00:21:45,740
All three of the synoptic writers, Matthew, Mark, and Luke,

532
00:21:45,740 --> 00:21:47,900
tell us that this meal in the upper room took place

533
00:21:47,900 --> 00:21:50,580
on the night of Passover, and that's true.

534
00:21:50,580 --> 00:21:53,060
But there's a short phrase in Paul's description

535
00:21:53,060 --> 00:21:56,460
in 1 Corinthians 11 that I find really, really important

536
00:21:56,460 --> 00:21:57,780
in a thematic sense.

537
00:21:57,780 --> 00:22:01,700
In 1 Corinthians 11, Paul recounts the ominous nature

538
00:22:01,700 --> 00:22:04,740
of that evening, and he says, it happened on the night

539
00:22:04,740 --> 00:22:08,300
in which he was betrayed, the night that he was betrayed.

540
00:22:08,300 --> 00:22:10,820
He's reminding us in that statement

541
00:22:10,820 --> 00:22:13,820
that Jesus knew what was coming in that moment.

542
00:22:13,820 --> 00:22:16,740
He knew what was coming, even as he was instituting

543
00:22:16,740 --> 00:22:20,020
the supper, he knew it was coming and it was coming soon.

544
00:22:20,020 --> 00:22:24,380
And imagine, imagine having in the back of your mind

545
00:22:24,380 --> 00:22:26,860
knowing what's coming, knowing that you are soon

546
00:22:26,860 --> 00:22:29,580
to be arrested and tortured and crucified,

547
00:22:29,580 --> 00:22:32,300
and yet in the midst of all that,

548
00:22:32,300 --> 00:22:34,540
Jesus is still thinking about his friends.

549
00:22:35,580 --> 00:22:38,420
We would be obsessed, we'd be like trembling.

550
00:22:38,420 --> 00:22:39,400
Do you not know what's happening?

551
00:22:39,400 --> 00:22:40,240
I'm gonna be arrested.

552
00:22:40,240 --> 00:22:41,820
We'd be in panic mode.

553
00:22:41,820 --> 00:22:44,020
Jesus is thinking about his friends.

554
00:22:44,020 --> 00:22:45,440
He's thinking about the distress

555
00:22:45,440 --> 00:22:47,100
that they're gonna go through,

556
00:22:47,100 --> 00:22:48,740
because this would not have been an easy thing

557
00:22:48,740 --> 00:22:51,020
for these men who had walked with Jesus,

558
00:22:51,020 --> 00:22:52,740
lived with him for years now,

559
00:22:52,740 --> 00:22:54,660
to see him suddenly taken away,

560
00:22:54,660 --> 00:22:57,420
to see him treated so brutally.

561
00:22:57,420 --> 00:23:00,540
And so part of what we see in this intimate evening meal

562
00:23:00,540 --> 00:23:04,500
is Jesus strengthening his disciples against fear,

563
00:23:04,500 --> 00:23:07,580
strengthening them, encouraging them to greater faith.

564
00:23:07,580 --> 00:23:09,020
And one of the ways he does that

565
00:23:09,020 --> 00:23:13,120
is in this mysterious giving to them of his body and blood.

566
00:23:14,100 --> 00:23:16,500
We need to figure out what that means, right?

567
00:23:16,500 --> 00:23:20,300
See, at times, God gives symbols and ceremonies to his people

568
00:23:20,300 --> 00:23:23,460
in order to communicate realities about who he is

569
00:23:23,460 --> 00:23:26,340
and about what he's intending to do for them.

570
00:23:26,340 --> 00:23:29,220
For example, just before his saving work in the Exodus,

571
00:23:29,220 --> 00:23:32,380
God gave the Passover to his people, didn't he?

572
00:23:32,380 --> 00:23:34,700
It was a meal that would be a constant reminder

573
00:23:34,700 --> 00:23:37,700
of his faithfulness to save them,

574
00:23:37,700 --> 00:23:40,060
to deliver them out of slavery in Egypt.

575
00:23:40,060 --> 00:23:42,900
And following in that pattern, now we have the upper room,

576
00:23:42,900 --> 00:23:46,080
just before he began his saving work on the cross,

577
00:23:46,080 --> 00:23:49,540
Jesus gives a whole new meal to his disciples.

578
00:23:49,540 --> 00:23:50,780
And by extension, he does that

579
00:23:50,780 --> 00:23:53,140
to every future generation of worshipers,

580
00:23:53,140 --> 00:23:55,200
so that we too might be reminded

581
00:23:55,200 --> 00:23:57,160
that God is faithful and God is loving.

582
00:23:58,440 --> 00:24:00,140
A new meal, a new Exodus.

583
00:24:00,140 --> 00:24:01,500
Many people have looked at this and said,

584
00:24:01,500 --> 00:24:03,580
"'Really, that's what we're talking about with the cross.

585
00:24:03,580 --> 00:24:06,540
"'It's a new Exodus, a saving work of God.'"

586
00:24:06,540 --> 00:24:10,700
And in each situation, he gives us a specific

587
00:24:10,700 --> 00:24:13,000
memorial meal to enjoy.

588
00:24:14,100 --> 00:24:14,920
That's the when.

589
00:24:14,920 --> 00:24:16,740
Let's look closer now at who's leading here.

590
00:24:16,740 --> 00:24:18,460
Who is the host of this meal?

591
00:24:18,460 --> 00:24:20,380
I mean, that's an obvious question, right?

592
00:24:20,380 --> 00:24:21,780
But look at verse 26.

593
00:24:21,780 --> 00:24:24,120
"'Jesus took some bread.'"

594
00:24:24,120 --> 00:24:26,300
Jesus takes the initiative.

595
00:24:26,300 --> 00:24:27,580
Notice throughout this story,

596
00:24:27,580 --> 00:24:30,340
the disciples don't act on their own.

597
00:24:30,340 --> 00:24:32,700
They simply receive from the Lord.

598
00:24:32,700 --> 00:24:33,780
He takes the initiative.

599
00:24:33,780 --> 00:24:35,340
As we go further into the story,

600
00:24:35,340 --> 00:24:37,500
we're gonna see he leads at every single step.

601
00:24:37,500 --> 00:24:40,000
In fact, the verbs tell the whole story.

602
00:24:40,000 --> 00:24:44,500
Jesus takes, Jesus blesses, Jesus breaks, Jesus gives.

603
00:24:45,560 --> 00:24:46,900
He is the one who leads.

604
00:24:46,900 --> 00:24:48,460
He is the one who administers.

605
00:24:48,460 --> 00:24:50,900
He's the one who gives gifts to his friends.

606
00:24:50,900 --> 00:24:52,220
What do his friends do?

607
00:24:52,220 --> 00:24:54,300
They say, thank you very much.

608
00:24:54,300 --> 00:24:58,500
They just receive good gifts from their Lord and master.

609
00:24:58,500 --> 00:24:59,960
So it's the host of the supper

610
00:24:59,960 --> 00:25:02,760
that is of highest importance.

611
00:25:02,760 --> 00:25:04,180
Thomas Watson puts it like this.

612
00:25:04,180 --> 00:25:08,260
He says, to institute sacraments belongs by right

613
00:25:08,260 --> 00:25:09,300
to Christ alone.

614
00:25:09,300 --> 00:25:11,240
It is the flower of his crown.

615
00:25:12,180 --> 00:25:14,320
That's what Jesus did that night.

616
00:25:14,320 --> 00:25:17,080
Now, much has been written about why he chose bread.

617
00:25:18,300 --> 00:25:21,500
Of all things, why choose bread to represent

618
00:25:21,500 --> 00:25:24,000
as a symbol of his body?

619
00:25:24,000 --> 00:25:25,620
But if you've been here at Oak Hill for a while,

620
00:25:25,620 --> 00:25:27,600
you know we've been studying through the Gospel of John.

621
00:25:27,600 --> 00:25:30,180
So you probably already know the answer to this question,

622
00:25:30,180 --> 00:25:31,020
right?

623
00:25:31,020 --> 00:25:32,820
John chapter six.

624
00:25:32,820 --> 00:25:33,660
What'd Jesus say?

625
00:25:33,660 --> 00:25:36,660
I'm the bread of life, he said to the Jewish crowds.

626
00:25:36,660 --> 00:25:39,420
He who comes to me will never be hungry.

627
00:25:39,420 --> 00:25:42,420
And then likening himself to the manna that came out of heaven

628
00:25:42,420 --> 00:25:44,580
that God gave to the wilderness generation

629
00:25:44,580 --> 00:25:46,300
so they would survive out there,

630
00:25:46,300 --> 00:25:49,720
he said, I'm the bread that has come down from heaven.

631
00:25:49,720 --> 00:25:51,060
And then he dropped the bombshell.

632
00:25:51,060 --> 00:25:54,020
He said, he who eats my flesh has eternal life,

633
00:25:54,020 --> 00:25:57,180
and I will raise him up on that last day.

634
00:25:57,180 --> 00:25:59,160
Now, I made the case back in John chapter six

635
00:25:59,160 --> 00:26:01,920
and I stand by it that Jesus back in chapter six

636
00:26:01,920 --> 00:26:04,820
was not actually talking about the Eucharist.

637
00:26:04,820 --> 00:26:05,660
He was not.

638
00:26:06,780 --> 00:26:07,620
Three reasons for that.

639
00:26:07,620 --> 00:26:09,160
First of all, it would not have made any sense

640
00:26:09,160 --> 00:26:11,480
to his audience to be referring to that.

641
00:26:11,480 --> 00:26:13,680
Secondly, and more importantly, in that scene,

642
00:26:13,680 --> 00:26:15,460
he wasn't talking to friends and disciples,

643
00:26:15,460 --> 00:26:18,820
he was talking to an unbelieving crowd, right?

644
00:26:18,820 --> 00:26:22,680
And third, the context of John chapter six is salvation.

645
00:26:22,680 --> 00:26:24,740
It's about obtaining eternal life.

646
00:26:24,740 --> 00:26:26,620
So back then I quoted Augustine,

647
00:26:26,620 --> 00:26:28,340
who based on the context said this,

648
00:26:28,340 --> 00:26:32,100
he said, to eat his flesh is to believe,

649
00:26:32,100 --> 00:26:33,820
to have saving faith.

650
00:26:33,820 --> 00:26:34,780
And I think that's right.

651
00:26:34,780 --> 00:26:37,900
I think that's exactly what Jesus meant in John chapter six.

652
00:26:37,900 --> 00:26:40,760
But don't forget, remember how impactful

653
00:26:40,760 --> 00:26:42,580
that teaching was on his disciples?

654
00:26:42,580 --> 00:26:43,820
Do you remember the story?

655
00:26:43,820 --> 00:26:46,700
Jesus teaches about this whole bread of life thing

656
00:26:46,700 --> 00:26:47,860
and coming down from heaven,

657
00:26:47,860 --> 00:26:49,740
he says, you gotta eat my flesh and drink my blood,

658
00:26:49,740 --> 00:26:51,940
and everybody panics, don't they?

659
00:26:51,940 --> 00:26:53,340
They're like, this is a hard teaching.

660
00:26:53,340 --> 00:26:55,100
Who can really believe it?

661
00:26:55,100 --> 00:26:58,500
So that teaching made a huge impact on his disciples

662
00:26:58,500 --> 00:26:59,320
back in the day.

663
00:26:59,320 --> 00:27:00,900
Many people stopped following him,

664
00:27:00,900 --> 00:27:02,280
but these 11 stuck with him.

665
00:27:02,280 --> 00:27:05,580
Now, when Jesus comes back to that in the upper room,

666
00:27:05,580 --> 00:27:07,100
do you think that it was a valuable teaching

667
00:27:07,100 --> 00:27:08,980
back in John chapter six?

668
00:27:08,980 --> 00:27:10,660
Do you think it quickly came back to their mind

669
00:27:10,660 --> 00:27:13,660
and they said, oh, okay, I'm starting to understand

670
00:27:13,660 --> 00:27:15,740
what you were saying, Lord.

671
00:27:15,740 --> 00:27:18,420
So it seems to me that through that previous hard teaching,

672
00:27:18,420 --> 00:27:21,620
Jesus had done the valuable and hard preparation work

673
00:27:21,620 --> 00:27:23,840
of tilling the soil in the minds and hearts

674
00:27:23,840 --> 00:27:26,100
of his disciples so that they could receive

675
00:27:26,100 --> 00:27:27,980
this flesh and blood on that night.

676
00:27:29,020 --> 00:27:30,600
Now, in addition to that, bread makes sense

677
00:27:30,600 --> 00:27:32,700
as a symbol for his body for a number of reasons.

678
00:27:32,700 --> 00:27:34,960
First of all, it was a staple of Jewish life

679
00:27:34,960 --> 00:27:36,920
in the first century, right?

680
00:27:36,920 --> 00:27:38,900
It was useful, it was simple,

681
00:27:38,900 --> 00:27:41,480
and here's the key, it was necessary for life.

682
00:27:41,480 --> 00:27:43,940
If you didn't have bread, you weren't gonna make it.

683
00:27:43,940 --> 00:27:46,180
Secondly, bread is satisfying.

684
00:27:46,180 --> 00:27:47,080
Bread lovers?

685
00:27:48,620 --> 00:27:49,460
Amen, right?

686
00:27:49,460 --> 00:27:52,360
If I'm hungry, man, you can give me all kinds of things,

687
00:27:52,360 --> 00:27:53,360
but I want bread.

688
00:27:53,360 --> 00:27:55,260
My body craves that bread, right?

689
00:27:55,260 --> 00:27:56,500
Something about it getting in your stomach

690
00:27:56,500 --> 00:27:58,540
and just expanding, I don't know what it is.

691
00:27:58,540 --> 00:27:59,380
Is that what it is?

692
00:27:59,380 --> 00:28:02,440
I don't know what it is, but bread is really satisfying.

693
00:28:02,440 --> 00:28:04,580
It really fills you up, right?

694
00:28:04,580 --> 00:28:07,080
So even in those very simple, practical ways,

695
00:28:07,080 --> 00:28:10,140
there's a profound parallel between the bread

696
00:28:10,140 --> 00:28:11,240
and the body of Christ.

697
00:28:11,240 --> 00:28:15,460
It's necessary for life and it satisfies our hunger.

698
00:28:15,460 --> 00:28:17,360
So it's brilliant, isn't it?

699
00:28:17,360 --> 00:28:19,620
Now, let's talk about the blessing that we see here,

700
00:28:19,620 --> 00:28:21,020
the Jesus praise.

701
00:28:21,020 --> 00:28:24,460
It says Jesus took some bread and after a blessing.

702
00:28:24,460 --> 00:28:27,340
Now, the Greek word there for blessing is eulogesos, right?

703
00:28:27,340 --> 00:28:30,380
And it refers to something that is praiseworthy.

704
00:28:30,380 --> 00:28:33,340
It refers to something that should be consecrated.

705
00:28:33,340 --> 00:28:34,800
So through this blessing,

706
00:28:34,800 --> 00:28:37,900
Jesus is sanctifying the elements, the bread and the cup.

707
00:28:37,900 --> 00:28:41,860
He's setting them aside for a very sacred purpose.

708
00:28:41,860 --> 00:28:43,400
Could there be a more sacred purpose

709
00:28:43,400 --> 00:28:45,380
than to represent His body and blood?

710
00:28:45,380 --> 00:28:49,700
Signs and a seal of His upcoming sacrifice on the cross.

711
00:28:49,700 --> 00:28:52,020
And in doing that, again, Thomas Watson says this,

712
00:28:52,020 --> 00:28:56,500
He opened up the nature of the sacrament to His disciples.

713
00:28:57,500 --> 00:28:58,340
The blessing.

714
00:28:59,180 --> 00:29:01,740
And then it says He broke the bread.

715
00:29:01,740 --> 00:29:04,060
He broke it, He snapped it in two.

716
00:29:04,060 --> 00:29:06,340
And looking back at that scene,

717
00:29:06,340 --> 00:29:08,340
I'm not sure it would have been all that obvious

718
00:29:08,340 --> 00:29:09,380
when you were there in that moment,

719
00:29:09,380 --> 00:29:11,820
but looking back, it surely seems like

720
00:29:11,820 --> 00:29:13,640
that had a great depth of meaning, right?

721
00:29:13,640 --> 00:29:15,900
That gesture was very, very meaningful.

722
00:29:15,900 --> 00:29:17,020
The host of the supper,

723
00:29:17,020 --> 00:29:19,780
whose body is about to be broken in death,

724
00:29:19,780 --> 00:29:22,580
holds up the loaf of bread and splits it

725
00:29:22,580 --> 00:29:25,220
and dispenses it to His friends.

726
00:29:25,220 --> 00:29:27,900
Because that's exactly what's about to happen

727
00:29:27,900 --> 00:29:30,060
to Jesus after this gesture.

728
00:29:30,060 --> 00:29:32,860
His body is gonna be broken for the eternal benefit

729
00:29:32,860 --> 00:29:35,580
of not just the men in that room that night,

730
00:29:35,580 --> 00:29:38,940
but for you and me, for our benefit, right?

731
00:29:38,940 --> 00:29:40,740
For all who will come to the table

732
00:29:40,740 --> 00:29:44,780
and partake of the body and the blood of the Lord by faith.

733
00:29:44,780 --> 00:29:47,940
It pleased the Lord to crush Him, Isaiah says.

734
00:29:47,940 --> 00:29:51,380
Have you ever thought carefully about that, that statement?

735
00:29:51,380 --> 00:29:54,580
My body broke and it pleased the Lord to do that.

736
00:29:55,500 --> 00:29:58,740
God the Father was pleased to crush His one and only Son.

737
00:29:58,740 --> 00:30:00,540
Some of you guys who are parents,

738
00:30:00,540 --> 00:30:03,180
fathom that for a second.

739
00:30:03,180 --> 00:30:05,780
It's hard to imagine, but it pleased the Lord to do that.

740
00:30:05,780 --> 00:30:08,780
To crush His one and only Son, to break Him.

741
00:30:08,780 --> 00:30:09,620
Why?

742
00:30:09,620 --> 00:30:11,660
Because of His redeeming purpose.

743
00:30:11,660 --> 00:30:13,220
Because of His great love for those

744
00:30:13,220 --> 00:30:15,180
whom He had marked out for salvation.

745
00:30:16,220 --> 00:30:19,460
Our griefs Jesus bore on that cross, Isaiah says.

746
00:30:19,460 --> 00:30:21,500
Our sorrows He carried.

747
00:30:21,500 --> 00:30:23,980
He was pierced through for our transgressions.

748
00:30:23,980 --> 00:30:27,060
He was broken for our iniquities.

749
00:30:27,060 --> 00:30:30,380
And He was rendered as a guilt offering for us.

750
00:30:30,380 --> 00:30:34,660
All those things are in view as Jesus breaks this loaf.

751
00:30:34,660 --> 00:30:38,500
Watson says this, it was our sins that struck Him.

752
00:30:38,500 --> 00:30:42,740
Our pride made Christ wear a crown of thorns.

753
00:30:42,740 --> 00:30:45,420
Let that sit there and hang over you.

754
00:30:47,420 --> 00:30:49,020
It was our sins that struck Him.

755
00:30:49,020 --> 00:30:54,020
Our pride that made Christ wear a crown of thorns.

756
00:30:54,020 --> 00:30:55,620
Yet God did not spare His Son.

757
00:30:56,940 --> 00:30:58,260
God did not spare His Son.

758
00:30:58,260 --> 00:31:01,900
In order that His justice would be fully satisfied.

759
00:31:01,900 --> 00:31:03,460
And for the joy set before Him,

760
00:31:03,460 --> 00:31:06,780
the salvation of those whom the Father would give to Him,

761
00:31:06,780 --> 00:31:09,980
all those that He would not lose, including you and me.

762
00:31:09,980 --> 00:31:14,980
For that joy He endured the cross and despised its shame.

763
00:31:15,700 --> 00:31:18,220
He became a curse for us.

764
00:31:18,220 --> 00:31:21,620
The perfect Son of God became sin.

765
00:31:21,620 --> 00:31:24,020
Became a curse for us in order to redeem us

766
00:31:24,020 --> 00:31:26,220
from the curse of the law,

767
00:31:26,220 --> 00:31:28,020
which condemned every single one of us.

768
00:31:29,300 --> 00:31:30,580
There's so much at work here.

769
00:31:30,580 --> 00:31:33,740
Imagine all these things are in view in the Passover night.

770
00:31:33,740 --> 00:31:36,380
Veiled in a mystery that soon is gonna come to light.

771
00:31:37,380 --> 00:31:38,220
Now let's pray.

772
00:31:38,220 --> 00:31:40,220
Let's pray for the Lord to come to light.

773
00:31:40,220 --> 00:31:41,700
Now let's be reminded again about

774
00:31:41,700 --> 00:31:43,700
who these guests are at the table.

775
00:31:43,700 --> 00:31:45,300
This is a very important principle.

776
00:31:45,300 --> 00:31:48,500
The text says He broke the bread and He gave it to who?

777
00:31:48,500 --> 00:31:49,900
To the disciples.

778
00:31:49,900 --> 00:31:52,060
This is a clear and important principle.

779
00:31:52,060 --> 00:31:55,060
The supper is not a meal for general consumption.

780
00:31:56,100 --> 00:31:57,860
It is for invited guests.

781
00:31:58,860 --> 00:32:01,100
The supper is for true disciples.

782
00:32:01,100 --> 00:32:04,180
For those who profess their love and devotion to Jesus.

783
00:32:04,180 --> 00:32:05,020
Period.

784
00:32:05,020 --> 00:32:07,580
Now that action word gave that you see there

785
00:32:07,580 --> 00:32:08,420
is really important.

786
00:32:08,420 --> 00:32:09,860
And I'm gonna camp here for just a moment

787
00:32:09,860 --> 00:32:14,140
because this principle of Jesus giving the elements

788
00:32:14,140 --> 00:32:16,300
is really gonna help us to understand more

789
00:32:16,300 --> 00:32:18,140
about the doctrine of communion.

790
00:32:18,140 --> 00:32:22,900
It says Jesus gave His supper to His disciples.

791
00:32:22,900 --> 00:32:24,660
Again, He's the initiator, right?

792
00:32:24,660 --> 00:32:26,180
He gave.

793
00:32:26,180 --> 00:32:28,100
So at the center of communion is this principle

794
00:32:28,100 --> 00:32:32,740
that Jesus gives gifts to His friends, to His followers.

795
00:32:32,740 --> 00:32:34,740
We don't bring a sacrifice.

796
00:32:34,740 --> 00:32:36,140
To the Lord's table.

797
00:32:37,140 --> 00:32:38,620
We don't bring a sacrifice.

798
00:32:38,620 --> 00:32:40,660
We don't offer anything to Him.

799
00:32:40,660 --> 00:32:43,580
And that is critically important to understand.

800
00:32:43,580 --> 00:32:45,580
Reformed theologians speak of the Eucharist

801
00:32:45,580 --> 00:32:48,220
always having a downward direction.

802
00:32:48,220 --> 00:32:49,060
Downward.

803
00:32:49,060 --> 00:32:52,940
It comes from our host down to us.

804
00:32:52,940 --> 00:32:54,980
In fact, Martin Luther in his very famous work,

805
00:32:54,980 --> 00:32:56,860
the Babylonian Captivity of the Church,

806
00:32:56,860 --> 00:32:58,100
here's how he described it.

807
00:32:58,100 --> 00:32:59,260
I'll put this quote on the screen

808
00:32:59,260 --> 00:33:01,060
because it's so important.

809
00:33:01,060 --> 00:33:03,300
Luther says, out of the sacrament,

810
00:33:03,300 --> 00:33:07,060
which ought to be a good gift received,

811
00:33:07,060 --> 00:33:10,980
the papus, and by that he means Roman Catholics, right?

812
00:33:10,980 --> 00:33:14,780
The papus had made for themselves a good deed performed,

813
00:33:14,780 --> 00:33:17,700
which they then give to others and offer up to God.

814
00:33:19,700 --> 00:33:20,540
Here's what he means.

815
00:33:20,540 --> 00:33:23,300
A sacrifice ascends from the people to God,

816
00:33:23,300 --> 00:33:24,740
but a sacrament is the opposite.

817
00:33:24,740 --> 00:33:28,220
It descends downward from God to us.

818
00:33:28,220 --> 00:33:30,300
Like salvation itself.

819
00:33:30,980 --> 00:33:32,500
That's so important to understand.

820
00:33:32,500 --> 00:33:35,500
Like salvation itself, a sacrament is God's work

821
00:33:35,500 --> 00:33:36,820
done for his people.

822
00:33:36,820 --> 00:33:38,940
We simply receive it by faith.

823
00:33:39,980 --> 00:33:40,820
We receive it.

824
00:33:40,820 --> 00:33:43,060
And just to be clear, Calvin actually agreed

825
00:33:43,060 --> 00:33:44,940
with Luther on this, okay?

826
00:33:44,940 --> 00:33:46,700
So I'm gonna put Calvin's quote up here as well.

827
00:33:46,700 --> 00:33:50,620
Calvin says this, Jesus bids the disciples to take.

828
00:33:50,620 --> 00:33:53,740
He is therefore the only one who offers.

829
00:33:53,740 --> 00:33:55,980
When the papus pretend, I love that word,

830
00:33:55,980 --> 00:33:58,820
pretend that they offer Christ in the supper,

831
00:33:58,820 --> 00:34:01,780
they're starting from quite another source.

832
00:34:01,780 --> 00:34:04,020
What a wonderful case of topsy-turvy

833
00:34:04,020 --> 00:34:07,580
that a mortal man bidden to receive the body of Christ

834
00:34:07,580 --> 00:34:10,620
should snatch to himself the role of offering.

835
00:34:11,580 --> 00:34:13,180
Let that sit there for a moment.

836
00:34:15,260 --> 00:34:18,300
Guys, in the evangelical church, we still do this today.

837
00:34:18,300 --> 00:34:19,380
We still make this error.

838
00:34:19,380 --> 00:34:22,740
We actually act very much like Roman Catholics

839
00:34:22,740 --> 00:34:25,660
when we think about almost like we have to do penance

840
00:34:26,620 --> 00:34:28,220
before we come to the Lord's table.

841
00:34:28,220 --> 00:34:29,980
We're gonna talk more about that as we,

842
00:34:29,980 --> 00:34:31,820
as we go along.

843
00:34:31,820 --> 00:34:34,940
So the reformers rediscovered the downward direction

844
00:34:34,940 --> 00:34:37,180
of the Lord's supple at the very same time

845
00:34:37,180 --> 00:34:39,420
they rediscovered the downward direction

846
00:34:39,420 --> 00:34:40,820
of the entire gospel.

847
00:34:41,660 --> 00:34:44,140
That it comes from God, that it's all about what God does

848
00:34:44,140 --> 00:34:46,340
in our lives, not what we do for God.

849
00:34:47,460 --> 00:34:50,100
And so salvation and the sacrament come together

850
00:34:50,100 --> 00:34:52,300
in the same direction.

851
00:34:52,300 --> 00:34:53,740
And both Luther and Calvin agreed

852
00:34:53,740 --> 00:34:55,700
that there were two extremes in their day

853
00:34:55,700 --> 00:34:58,900
that made the Lord's supper a place where believers

854
00:34:58,900 --> 00:35:03,060
mistakenly try to do things for God instead of receiving.

855
00:35:03,060 --> 00:35:05,700
Both extremes, people doing things,

856
00:35:05,700 --> 00:35:10,700
offering sacrifices to God rather than just being still

857
00:35:10,700 --> 00:35:12,580
and receiving his blessings.

858
00:35:12,580 --> 00:35:14,660
On the one side, again, were the Roman Catholics

859
00:35:14,660 --> 00:35:17,300
offering Christ up to God through the mass,

860
00:35:17,300 --> 00:35:20,220
but on the other side were the Anabaptists

861
00:35:20,220 --> 00:35:22,940
who viewed the Lord's table in terms of their offering

862
00:35:22,940 --> 00:35:27,020
up to God a deep devotion and a commitment to purity.

863
00:35:27,020 --> 00:35:29,340
That's what they saw as the meaning of the table.

864
00:35:29,340 --> 00:35:32,500
And in both cases, the direction of the table was upward.

865
00:35:32,500 --> 00:35:35,740
It was an offering made by human beings to God

866
00:35:35,740 --> 00:35:38,980
rather than a sacrament received downward from God to us.

867
00:35:40,140 --> 00:35:41,980
And we have to get this right.

868
00:35:41,980 --> 00:35:44,500
We can easily make that same mistake today.

869
00:35:45,340 --> 00:35:47,940
But notice again, the disciples of that Passover meal

870
00:35:47,940 --> 00:35:50,100
were not commanded to do anything for God.

871
00:35:51,100 --> 00:35:52,740
Do you see Jesus saying anything to them?

872
00:35:52,740 --> 00:35:55,340
Hey guys, get up and offer something to me.

873
00:35:55,340 --> 00:35:57,300
Get up and do something for me.

874
00:35:57,300 --> 00:35:59,140
There's nothing like that there, right?

875
00:35:59,140 --> 00:36:01,380
They're simply to receive Jesus' gift

876
00:36:01,380 --> 00:36:03,500
and to eat and to drink.

877
00:36:03,500 --> 00:36:05,820
And that truth is gonna help us better understand

878
00:36:05,820 --> 00:36:08,540
the mystery of communion and to help us understand

879
00:36:08,540 --> 00:36:10,700
the spiritual transaction, if you will,

880
00:36:10,700 --> 00:36:13,060
that takes place when we come to the table.

881
00:36:14,500 --> 00:36:16,740
Jesus says take and eat.

882
00:36:16,740 --> 00:36:19,300
By the way, notice that that's an imperative.

883
00:36:19,300 --> 00:36:21,100
It's a command.

884
00:36:21,100 --> 00:36:22,340
Take and eat.

885
00:36:22,340 --> 00:36:24,340
It's not a suggestion, it's a command.

886
00:36:24,340 --> 00:36:26,780
It's not a suggestion, it's authoritative.

887
00:36:26,780 --> 00:36:29,700
Participating in the Lord's Supper is not something

888
00:36:29,700 --> 00:36:32,580
that Jesus merely hopes that on occasion

889
00:36:32,580 --> 00:36:34,460
you can swing by and participate in.

890
00:36:36,180 --> 00:36:37,340
It's authoritative.

891
00:36:37,340 --> 00:36:38,780
Take and eat.

892
00:36:38,780 --> 00:36:41,340
Imagine for a moment having the king in the universe

893
00:36:41,340 --> 00:36:44,300
invite you to come to his table,

894
00:36:44,300 --> 00:36:46,700
then condescend to give you gifts,

895
00:36:46,700 --> 00:36:47,900
and in response saying,

896
00:36:47,900 --> 00:36:50,100
I'll see if I can fit it into my calendar.

897
00:36:50,100 --> 00:36:53,100
Sorry Lord, I've got another commitment on that night.

898
00:36:54,940 --> 00:36:57,020
This is what I mean, part of the casual nature

899
00:36:57,020 --> 00:36:59,100
of the table in the evangelical world.

900
00:36:59,100 --> 00:37:01,620
We've just decided that, oh, that's optional.

901
00:37:03,340 --> 00:37:04,300
It's not a big deal.

902
00:37:05,620 --> 00:37:07,260
Again, here's how Thomas Watson puts that.

903
00:37:07,260 --> 00:37:11,260
He says, it's evil for us willfully to omit

904
00:37:11,260 --> 00:37:14,380
such an ordinance wherein the trophy of mercy

905
00:37:14,380 --> 00:37:16,980
is so richly displayed and our salvation

906
00:37:16,980 --> 00:37:18,620
is so richly displayed.

907
00:37:18,620 --> 00:37:21,060
And our salvation is so nearly concerned.

908
00:37:21,060 --> 00:37:24,580
Christ may take this as an undervaluing of him.

909
00:37:26,100 --> 00:37:27,180
I don't think anybody in this room

910
00:37:27,180 --> 00:37:28,620
wants to undervalue Christ.

911
00:37:30,940 --> 00:37:34,260
But we need to look at how we view his table

912
00:37:34,260 --> 00:37:35,580
and the sacred nature,

913
00:37:37,140 --> 00:37:39,100
the way the church has always seen it.

914
00:37:40,060 --> 00:37:41,060
Then we get to the big one.

915
00:37:41,060 --> 00:37:44,020
Take and eat, he said, this is my body.

916
00:37:44,780 --> 00:37:47,460
Now, we're gonna flesh that out over weeks.

917
00:37:47,460 --> 00:37:49,540
There's just too much to be said in one sermon,

918
00:37:49,540 --> 00:37:51,300
but consider a couple of things.

919
00:37:51,300 --> 00:37:54,100
Part of Jesus' goal here was to give the disciples

920
00:37:54,100 --> 00:37:57,500
a physical, tangible sign of the incarnation.

921
00:37:59,620 --> 00:38:02,180
The incarnation is key to understanding who Jesus is,

922
00:38:02,180 --> 00:38:05,780
why his sacrifice is sufficient for our sins.

923
00:38:05,780 --> 00:38:07,860
Something that would correspond to the reality

924
00:38:07,860 --> 00:38:10,820
of this human nature that he, as God the Son,

925
00:38:10,820 --> 00:38:12,220
took upon himself.

926
00:38:13,460 --> 00:38:14,300
Here's bread.

927
00:38:14,300 --> 00:38:17,220
It represents my body, it's a symbol of my body.

928
00:38:17,220 --> 00:38:19,260
It signifies a reality.

929
00:38:19,260 --> 00:38:20,980
It's about my incarnation.

930
00:38:20,980 --> 00:38:23,060
Do you feel it, do you see it, do you smell it,

931
00:38:23,060 --> 00:38:25,580
can you taste it, can you use your senses?

932
00:38:25,580 --> 00:38:28,140
It's a physical, tangible thing.

933
00:38:28,140 --> 00:38:29,940
One theologian put it this way.

934
00:38:29,940 --> 00:38:33,380
Jesus didn't want to leave his disciples with just a word,

935
00:38:33,380 --> 00:38:35,380
but also with a physical touch.

936
00:38:36,940 --> 00:38:39,100
And that truth is often expressed in a phrase

937
00:38:39,100 --> 00:38:40,380
that we don't often use, again,

938
00:38:40,380 --> 00:38:42,620
in the evangelical church,

939
00:38:42,620 --> 00:38:44,540
but it's a phrase that we should bring back.

940
00:38:44,540 --> 00:38:45,860
Word and sacrament.

941
00:38:47,460 --> 00:38:48,460
Word and sacrament.

942
00:38:48,460 --> 00:38:50,980
In fact, historically, the reformers spoke

943
00:38:50,980 --> 00:38:54,420
of those two things as the two true marks of a church.

944
00:38:55,620 --> 00:38:58,420
Those are the true marks of a true church, they said.

945
00:38:58,420 --> 00:39:01,580
A gathered body of believers where the gospel is proclaimed

946
00:39:01,580 --> 00:39:04,020
through both word and sacrament.

947
00:39:04,020 --> 00:39:06,580
Not just word, but word and sacrament.

948
00:39:07,860 --> 00:39:09,860
To be more specific, the faithful proclamation

949
00:39:09,860 --> 00:39:12,060
of the gospel of God is a word.

950
00:39:12,060 --> 00:39:15,620
The gospel of God's word and the faithful administration

951
00:39:15,620 --> 00:39:17,700
of the two sacraments of the New Testament,

952
00:39:17,700 --> 00:39:19,700
both baptism and communion.

953
00:39:19,700 --> 00:39:21,660
So first and foremost, we have this,

954
00:39:21,660 --> 00:39:24,340
what we're doing right now, the pulpit ministry, right?

955
00:39:24,340 --> 00:39:25,860
This is critical.

956
00:39:25,860 --> 00:39:28,660
The word in all of its forms, right?

957
00:39:28,660 --> 00:39:29,900
Not just the preaching of the word,

958
00:39:29,900 --> 00:39:31,780
but the reading of the word, which we did today.

959
00:39:31,780 --> 00:39:33,820
The singing of the word, which we've done today.

960
00:39:33,820 --> 00:39:36,100
The praying of the word, and of course,

961
00:39:36,100 --> 00:39:37,060
the preaching of the word.

962
00:39:37,060 --> 00:39:41,380
That comes first, but the second is vitally connected to it.

963
00:39:41,380 --> 00:39:44,140
We connect sacrament to the word,

964
00:39:44,140 --> 00:39:45,700
confirming what the word said

965
00:39:45,700 --> 00:39:47,980
through a physical, tangible sign.

966
00:39:48,980 --> 00:39:51,180
And this is what we haven't understood well.

967
00:39:52,180 --> 00:39:54,100
We're just like, hey, somebody broke some bread

968
00:39:54,100 --> 00:39:55,980
and put it on a plate, this is cool.

969
00:39:57,060 --> 00:40:00,260
Right, somebody poured some grape juice in the back room.

970
00:40:00,260 --> 00:40:02,020
But there's more to it than that.

971
00:40:02,980 --> 00:40:06,860
It's designed to be more powerful than we've seen it, guys.

972
00:40:06,860 --> 00:40:08,740
And this is what we need to get back to.

973
00:40:08,740 --> 00:40:10,660
In a sense, what happens in the sacrament

974
00:40:10,660 --> 00:40:12,740
is we get a visible sermon.

975
00:40:13,620 --> 00:40:15,780
A visible proclamation of the gospel.

976
00:40:15,780 --> 00:40:18,460
So catch this, communion was ordained by Christ

977
00:40:18,460 --> 00:40:21,140
as a physical extension of the pulpit ministry.

978
00:40:22,420 --> 00:40:24,340
In the sermon, the Lord speaks through His word

979
00:40:24,340 --> 00:40:26,860
by the Spirit, telling us about His love and grace,

980
00:40:26,860 --> 00:40:29,380
and we hear that, and we ingest that, right?

981
00:40:29,380 --> 00:40:31,860
But then at the table, in a very tactile way,

982
00:40:31,860 --> 00:40:33,740
He feeds us with His love and grace

983
00:40:33,740 --> 00:40:35,060
in the bread and the cup.

984
00:40:35,060 --> 00:40:36,940
The two are designed to go together

985
00:40:36,940 --> 00:40:39,940
for the full experience of what it means to know Christ.

986
00:40:41,180 --> 00:40:43,260
So good news for you, it's been said

987
00:40:43,260 --> 00:40:45,180
that even if the sermon's terrible,

988
00:40:46,340 --> 00:40:48,060
the sacrament preaches the gospel.

989
00:40:50,780 --> 00:40:51,620
That was too easy.

990
00:40:53,340 --> 00:40:55,340
Because the two things go hand in hand.

991
00:40:55,340 --> 00:40:56,660
That's what the early church believed,

992
00:40:56,660 --> 00:40:58,220
that's what the reformers said,

993
00:40:58,220 --> 00:41:00,660
that's what we seem to have lost

994
00:41:00,660 --> 00:41:02,660
in so much of the modern day church.

995
00:41:03,740 --> 00:41:06,060
Jesus then moves on to explain a second sign that says,

996
00:41:06,060 --> 00:41:10,220
He took a cup, and here's what Calvin has to say about that.

997
00:41:10,220 --> 00:41:12,060
Calvin says, the Lord gave two symbols

998
00:41:12,060 --> 00:41:14,740
to assure us that our life is established in Him.

999
00:41:14,740 --> 00:41:16,580
Our bodies need both of these things, right?

1000
00:41:16,580 --> 00:41:20,100
Food and drink for nourishment and sustenance.

1001
00:41:21,460 --> 00:41:22,300
Here's the way I see this.

1002
00:41:22,300 --> 00:41:25,340
First, bread is given to strengthen us.

1003
00:41:25,340 --> 00:41:27,660
Bread strengthens us,

1004
00:41:27,660 --> 00:41:29,900
but then wine makes our hearts glad, doesn't it?

1005
00:41:31,180 --> 00:41:32,700
That's straight from Psalm 104.

1006
00:41:32,700 --> 00:41:35,580
The Lord's table does both of those things.

1007
00:41:35,580 --> 00:41:38,820
In a mysterious way that we're gonna delve into together

1008
00:41:38,820 --> 00:41:41,820
as we go along, you and I are spiritually nourished

1009
00:41:41,820 --> 00:41:43,180
and strengthened by the bread,

1010
00:41:43,180 --> 00:41:45,700
and then our hearts are made glad by the cup

1011
00:41:45,700 --> 00:41:48,740
as we're reminded about God's love

1012
00:41:48,740 --> 00:41:50,620
and God's grace in our lives.

1013
00:41:50,620 --> 00:41:54,140
So the two work hand in hand to strengthen us

1014
00:41:54,140 --> 00:41:56,180
and to make our hearts glad in Him.

1015
00:41:56,180 --> 00:41:57,740
It's really a beautiful picture.

1016
00:41:58,980 --> 00:42:02,580
Now look at the phrase in verse 27, He gave thanks.

1017
00:42:02,580 --> 00:42:03,420
He gave thanks.

1018
00:42:03,420 --> 00:42:06,460
He gave thanks, guess what that word is in the Greek?

1019
00:42:06,460 --> 00:42:09,820
Eucharistio, the Eucharist.

1020
00:42:09,820 --> 00:42:10,940
It's right there.

1021
00:42:10,940 --> 00:42:12,900
So Jesus gives thanks to the Father

1022
00:42:12,900 --> 00:42:14,100
for this fruit of the vine,

1023
00:42:14,100 --> 00:42:16,180
but there's even more implied here.

1024
00:42:16,180 --> 00:42:18,340
Again, I'm gonna go to Thomas Watson who explains it.

1025
00:42:18,340 --> 00:42:21,860
He says this, Christ gave thanks that God the Father had

1026
00:42:21,860 --> 00:42:25,380
in the infinite riches of His grace given His Son

1027
00:42:25,380 --> 00:42:27,980
to expiate the sins of the world,

1028
00:42:27,980 --> 00:42:30,380
and that God had given these elements of bread and wine

1029
00:42:30,380 --> 00:42:33,500
as not only signs, but seals of our redemption.

1030
00:42:35,060 --> 00:42:37,780
Do you get a sense that these guys understood communion

1031
00:42:37,780 --> 00:42:41,220
in a much deeper way than we tend to see it today?

1032
00:42:43,660 --> 00:42:45,860
And He gave it to them saying, drink from it, all of you.

1033
00:42:45,860 --> 00:42:47,820
Again, we see the host of the supper.

1034
00:42:47,820 --> 00:42:48,660
What does He do?

1035
00:42:48,660 --> 00:42:50,460
He gives to His guests.

1036
00:42:50,460 --> 00:42:51,300
What do the guests do?

1037
00:42:51,300 --> 00:42:53,340
They receive and drink, right?

1038
00:42:53,340 --> 00:42:55,380
They receive and eat, now they receive and drink.

1039
00:42:55,380 --> 00:42:57,260
They enjoy the gift.

1040
00:42:57,260 --> 00:42:59,380
The host has the gift, he dispenses the gifts.

1041
00:42:59,380 --> 00:43:00,820
We simply receive.

1042
00:43:01,740 --> 00:43:04,340
And what reality does the sign of the cut point to?

1043
00:43:04,340 --> 00:43:08,820
Jesus goes on to say, this is my blood of the covenant.

1044
00:43:08,820 --> 00:43:10,260
That's a powerful phrase.

1045
00:43:11,380 --> 00:43:14,020
That's something worth meditating on.

1046
00:43:14,020 --> 00:43:16,460
This is my blood of the covenant which is poured out

1047
00:43:16,460 --> 00:43:19,220
for many for the forgiveness of sins.

1048
00:43:19,220 --> 00:43:21,460
By the way, I did a, Grant will love this,

1049
00:43:21,460 --> 00:43:24,060
I did a Google search yesterday on worship songs

1050
00:43:24,060 --> 00:43:26,740
that have the lyrics, the blood of Jesus in it.

1051
00:43:26,740 --> 00:43:28,580
I mean, it is almost inexhaustible.

1052
00:43:28,580 --> 00:43:30,300
Like Google gave me so many search results

1053
00:43:30,300 --> 00:43:31,580
I couldn't even handle it.

1054
00:43:32,460 --> 00:43:36,740
The blood of Jesus has been just a massive theme

1055
00:43:36,740 --> 00:43:39,900
in the history of worship in the church.

1056
00:43:40,860 --> 00:43:42,100
It's all over the place.

1057
00:43:43,900 --> 00:43:46,420
We are told in scripture that all things

1058
00:43:46,420 --> 00:43:48,700
are cleansed with blood.

1059
00:43:49,820 --> 00:43:52,100
That's a hard thing for us as modern people to understand,

1060
00:43:52,100 --> 00:43:53,660
but all things are cleansed with blood

1061
00:43:53,660 --> 00:43:54,900
and without the shedding of blood,

1062
00:43:54,900 --> 00:43:56,860
there is no forgiveness.

1063
00:43:56,860 --> 00:43:58,220
There's no forgiveness.

1064
00:43:58,220 --> 00:44:01,660
And in the blood of Jesus, we see sin both fully punished

1065
00:44:01,660 --> 00:44:04,380
and fully pardoned for those who trust in Him.

1066
00:44:04,380 --> 00:44:06,140
That's an amazing truth, right?

1067
00:44:06,140 --> 00:44:09,860
Both His justice and His mercy expressed through His blood.

1068
00:44:11,660 --> 00:44:13,340
Wow, for those who trust in Him alone,

1069
00:44:13,340 --> 00:44:17,020
God the Son receives the full punishment that's due to us

1070
00:44:17,020 --> 00:44:19,180
and we receive the righteousness,

1071
00:44:19,180 --> 00:44:21,740
His righteousness and a pardon.

1072
00:44:21,740 --> 00:44:23,860
That's what we call that the great exchange, right?

1073
00:44:23,860 --> 00:44:26,940
He gets all of our sin, we get all of His righteousness

1074
00:44:26,940 --> 00:44:28,620
through His blood.

1075
00:44:28,620 --> 00:44:30,860
So Jesus' blood is both a cleansing blood

1076
00:44:30,860 --> 00:44:32,460
and it's a reconciling blood.

1077
00:44:32,460 --> 00:44:34,900
It actually even goes beyond a pardon.

1078
00:44:34,900 --> 00:44:37,540
It washes us away, but it actually brings us

1079
00:44:37,540 --> 00:44:38,980
into favor with God.

1080
00:44:40,180 --> 00:44:42,500
That is an amazing, it's one thing for a criminal

1081
00:44:42,500 --> 00:44:44,540
to be absolved of a crime and say,

1082
00:44:44,540 --> 00:44:46,980
you know, that's been wiped away,

1083
00:44:46,980 --> 00:44:50,340
but then to bring you into favor before Almighty God,

1084
00:44:51,220 --> 00:44:52,980
that is something altogether different.

1085
00:44:52,980 --> 00:44:55,260
Is there anything else that could accomplish

1086
00:44:55,260 --> 00:44:56,100
such a miracle?

1087
00:44:58,260 --> 00:44:59,700
What can wash away my sin?

1088
00:45:01,700 --> 00:45:03,700
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

1089
00:45:03,700 --> 00:45:05,140
What can make me whole again?

1090
00:45:06,260 --> 00:45:07,620
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

1091
00:45:07,620 --> 00:45:10,060
This is all my hope and peace, we sing.

1092
00:45:10,060 --> 00:45:13,340
This is all my righteousness, we sing.

1093
00:45:13,340 --> 00:45:14,740
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

1094
00:45:14,740 --> 00:45:19,060
By this I'll overcome, by this I'll reach my home.

1095
00:45:19,060 --> 00:45:20,660
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

1096
00:45:20,660 --> 00:45:23,260
What a statement that Jesus makes in the upper room

1097
00:45:23,260 --> 00:45:24,100
about his blood.

1098
00:45:24,100 --> 00:45:26,700
Here's what Watson has to say about the blood.

1099
00:45:26,700 --> 00:45:30,260
He says, like Israel passing through the Red Sea,

1100
00:45:30,260 --> 00:45:32,300
so through the Red Sea of Christ's blood,

1101
00:45:32,300 --> 00:45:35,100
we enter into the heavenly promise.

1102
00:45:35,100 --> 00:45:38,260
Our sins shut heaven, Christ's blood is the key

1103
00:45:38,260 --> 00:45:41,340
which opens the gates of paradise for us.

1104
00:45:43,140 --> 00:45:45,340
Notice how Jesus says the blood of my covenant.

1105
00:45:45,340 --> 00:45:46,460
Why does that matter?

1106
00:45:46,460 --> 00:45:48,940
The blood's amazing, but what about the blood of Jesus?

1107
00:45:48,940 --> 00:45:50,780
What does that mean?

1108
00:45:50,780 --> 00:45:52,780
Well, the new covenant speaks to the promises

1109
00:45:52,780 --> 00:45:55,180
that have been given to us by God.

1110
00:45:55,180 --> 00:45:57,300
Covenant is always about promise, right?

1111
00:45:57,300 --> 00:46:00,460
All those who trust in his son, Jesus' blood represents

1112
00:46:00,460 --> 00:46:02,980
for us the ultimate insecurity

1113
00:46:02,980 --> 00:46:05,460
because it's sealed by a covenant.

1114
00:46:06,540 --> 00:46:09,700
His blood serves as the solid judicial basis

1115
00:46:09,700 --> 00:46:12,420
for our saving relationship with God.

1116
00:46:12,420 --> 00:46:13,620
It's his blood that does that.

1117
00:46:13,620 --> 00:46:17,140
His shed blood guarantees for us eternal life.

1118
00:46:17,140 --> 00:46:22,140
All these things are going on in the upper room that night.

1119
00:46:24,740 --> 00:46:27,740
So, I gotta be quick.

1120
00:46:27,740 --> 00:46:29,340
Just one or two final thoughts.

1121
00:46:29,340 --> 00:46:31,220
Again, today was just foundational.

1122
00:46:31,220 --> 00:46:33,180
I just wanna go through that story

1123
00:46:33,180 --> 00:46:35,780
so you can see the depth of it all

1124
00:46:35,780 --> 00:46:37,140
and to begin to understand it more.

1125
00:46:37,140 --> 00:46:39,380
Now we're gonna flesh that out over the next few weeks,

1126
00:46:39,380 --> 00:46:40,740
but just a few last thoughts.

1127
00:46:40,740 --> 00:46:43,940
John Chrysostom, known as the Golden,

1128
00:46:43,940 --> 00:46:45,740
was it the Golden Age?

1129
00:46:45,740 --> 00:46:49,980
Was it the golden throated preacher of the fourth century?

1130
00:46:49,980 --> 00:46:50,940
The best of his day.

1131
00:46:50,940 --> 00:46:53,700
He said, the celebration of the Lord's Supper

1132
00:46:53,700 --> 00:46:55,980
is the commemoration of the greatest blessing

1133
00:46:55,980 --> 00:46:57,620
that the world has ever enjoyed.

1134
00:46:59,340 --> 00:47:00,340
Do you believe that?

1135
00:47:02,980 --> 00:47:04,060
Do we believe that?

1136
00:47:04,060 --> 00:47:06,620
Do we live, I mean, do we live like we believe that?

1137
00:47:07,660 --> 00:47:10,300
That it's that important, that it's that sacred?

1138
00:47:11,980 --> 00:47:14,500
Take a closer look and see the infinite love of God

1139
00:47:14,500 --> 00:47:17,940
on display in giving Christ to us in this way,

1140
00:47:17,940 --> 00:47:19,340
broken and bleeding.

1141
00:47:20,700 --> 00:47:22,300
Broken and bleeding on the cross.

1142
00:47:22,300 --> 00:47:24,660
There is no greater possible expression of love

1143
00:47:25,580 --> 00:47:27,340
that you, my King, would die for me.

1144
00:47:28,940 --> 00:47:30,300
That's what it's all about.

1145
00:47:31,180 --> 00:47:32,660
That's what it was about in the Upper Room,

1146
00:47:32,660 --> 00:47:33,940
2,000 years ago.

1147
00:47:33,940 --> 00:47:37,620
That's what it's still about as we wait for him to return.

1148
00:47:37,620 --> 00:47:39,660
That you, my King, would die for me.

1149
00:47:40,700 --> 00:47:43,420
We bring no sacrifice to the dead.

1150
00:47:43,420 --> 00:47:45,260
We don't have anything to bring to him

1151
00:47:46,220 --> 00:47:48,260
that could win his favor.

1152
00:47:48,260 --> 00:47:50,420
We simply receive gifts from his hand

1153
00:47:50,420 --> 00:47:55,020
as he spiritually feeds and nourishes us at his table,

1154
00:47:55,020 --> 00:47:58,420
building us up, building us up through his great promises,

1155
00:47:58,420 --> 00:48:01,300
strengthening our faith, which is always so weak.

1156
00:48:01,300 --> 00:48:02,940
Guys, did you know that the Lord's table

1157
00:48:02,940 --> 00:48:04,580
is for those weak in faith,

1158
00:48:05,500 --> 00:48:07,780
so that he might nourish us and encourage us

1159
00:48:07,780 --> 00:48:09,460
and strengthen us there?

1160
00:48:09,460 --> 00:48:11,340
We'll get more into that later.

1161
00:48:11,340 --> 00:48:13,980
But how can our affections not be stirred up by this?

1162
00:48:14,980 --> 00:48:16,540
Maybe that's the question I wanna leave you with

1163
00:48:16,540 --> 00:48:17,380
this morning.

1164
00:48:17,380 --> 00:48:19,900
How can our affections not be stirred

1165
00:48:19,900 --> 00:48:21,300
by what Christ has done for us?

1166
00:48:21,300 --> 00:48:24,060
And the memorial that he's left us,

1167
00:48:24,060 --> 00:48:25,420
the ordinance, the sacrament,

1168
00:48:25,420 --> 00:48:27,620
whatever term you feel comfortable using,

1169
00:48:27,620 --> 00:48:29,100
that he has left that for us

1170
00:48:29,100 --> 00:48:30,940
to combine the preaching of the word

1171
00:48:30,940 --> 00:48:33,740
with the tangible touch of the sacrament.

1172
00:48:34,860 --> 00:48:36,940
How can our affections not be stirred?

1173
00:48:36,940 --> 00:48:38,300
Not just our intellect.

1174
00:48:39,620 --> 00:48:40,540
Don't get it wrong.

1175
00:48:40,540 --> 00:48:42,620
Not just, ooh, I mentally ascend to that.

1176
00:48:42,620 --> 00:48:43,660
That's really great.

1177
00:48:44,580 --> 00:48:45,740
Our affections.

1178
00:48:46,820 --> 00:48:48,740
Dare I say our emotions.

1179
00:48:49,860 --> 00:48:51,380
Can we say that in the church?

1180
00:48:52,580 --> 00:48:53,420
Our emotions.

1181
00:48:53,420 --> 00:48:55,900
Listen one last time to Thomas Watson.

1182
00:48:55,900 --> 00:48:59,220
He says, was Christ's body broken for us?

1183
00:48:59,220 --> 00:49:03,100
Let us then be affected with the great goodness of Christ.

1184
00:49:03,100 --> 00:49:06,860
Who can tread upon these hot coals and his heart not burn?

1185
00:49:06,860 --> 00:49:09,900
He who is not affected with this has a heart

1186
00:49:09,900 --> 00:49:12,540
harder than the stones.

1187
00:49:12,540 --> 00:49:14,260
Oh, with what reverence and devotion

1188
00:49:14,260 --> 00:49:18,100
should we address ourselves to these holy mysteries?

1189
00:49:19,660 --> 00:49:21,740
Guys, make plans to be with us over the next three weeks.

1190
00:49:21,740 --> 00:49:23,380
We're gonna continue on this journey

1191
00:49:23,380 --> 00:49:26,340
into both mystery and mercy as we look at communion.

1192
00:49:26,340 --> 00:49:27,340
Let's pray together.

1193
00:49:33,300 --> 00:49:36,540
Father, it's hard after looking at all that

1194
00:49:36,540 --> 00:49:38,700
to come to you and even have words.

1195
00:49:39,900 --> 00:49:43,660
To even have words to express how humbled we are

1196
00:49:44,580 --> 00:49:47,940
by your great gift to us, by Christ on the cross,

1197
00:49:49,260 --> 00:49:50,460
by your word preached,

1198
00:49:50,460 --> 00:49:53,500
by your word confirmed in the sacrament.

1199
00:49:53,500 --> 00:49:54,860
That you've not left us alone.

1200
00:49:54,860 --> 00:49:56,220
You've said you'll always be with us

1201
00:49:56,220 --> 00:49:58,420
and then you've given us this tangible sign as well

1202
00:49:58,420 --> 00:50:01,860
that we can lean into and be reassured of your promises

1203
00:50:01,860 --> 00:50:04,020
and be strengthened in faith.

1204
00:50:04,020 --> 00:50:08,260
Father, thank you for the spirit that you've sent

1205
00:50:08,260 --> 00:50:11,060
that as your son was ascended to heaven,

1206
00:50:11,060 --> 00:50:13,540
the spirit would come and live not just among us,

1207
00:50:13,540 --> 00:50:15,980
but in us so that we would always know

1208
00:50:15,980 --> 00:50:17,700
that you are present with us.

1209
00:50:17,700 --> 00:50:20,780
Leading us into truth, guiding us along our way.

1210
00:50:20,780 --> 00:50:22,460
Lord, you have been so gracious to us

1211
00:50:22,460 --> 00:50:25,540
and sometimes Lord, we take it for granted.

1212
00:50:25,540 --> 00:50:28,340
Father, we repent as a church family today

1213
00:50:28,340 --> 00:50:29,540
for taking it for granted,

1214
00:50:29,540 --> 00:50:32,260
for not understanding the sacred nature

1215
00:50:32,260 --> 00:50:33,540
of your sacrifice for us,

1216
00:50:33,540 --> 00:50:35,380
for not understanding the sacred nature

1217
00:50:35,380 --> 00:50:37,340
of what you've left for us.

1218
00:50:37,340 --> 00:50:41,020
So Father, may you work in this sermon series

1219
00:50:41,020 --> 00:50:43,460
over the next few weeks to realign us

1220
00:50:43,460 --> 00:50:45,460
in a way that we see you more clearly.

1221
00:50:45,460 --> 00:50:48,260
May you be glorified in our thoughts even today

1222
00:50:48,260 --> 00:50:49,940
as we process through this,

1223
00:50:49,940 --> 00:50:52,300
in our emotions and our affections as well.

1224
00:50:53,220 --> 00:50:54,740
Lord, it's all for your glory.

1225
00:50:54,740 --> 00:50:56,820
So we thank you for the opportunity

1226
00:50:56,820 --> 00:50:58,500
to now sing praises to your name.

1227
00:50:58,500 --> 00:51:03,500
Amen.