[0:00] Well, we're going to turn back to the chapter that we read in Hebrews chapter 7. For on the one hand, a former commandment is set aside because of its weakness and uselessness.
[0:36] For the law made nothing perfect. But on the other hand, a better hope is introduced through which we draw near to God. And it was not without an oath. For those who formerly became priests were made such without an oath.
[0:51] But this one was made a priest with an oath by the one who said to him, The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind.
[1:03] You are a priest forever. Now, in the previous verses to the ones that we want to focus on, which we read together, the apostle is showing that the Levitical priesthood is to pass away.
[1:25] It was inevitable that it must pass away. And he, first of all, pointed out that before Aaron, that there had been another priesthood, which was a far more excellent priesthood after the order of Melchizedek.
[1:45] Now, for the last couple of evenings, those who were present, we've been focusing our attention on the priesthood after the order of Melchizedek.
[2:00] But coming back to the chapter that we have here, the apostle then introduces to them a more excellent priesthood, which was foreshadowed by the priesthood of Melchizedek, and that's the priesthood of the Lord Jesus Christ.
[2:21] Now, he's making it clear that both these priesthoods couldn't exist side by side.
[2:33] The Levitical priesthood, or the Aaronic priesthood, as it's sometimes known, couldn't exist alongside the priesthood of the Lord Jesus Christ once Christ came into this world.
[2:47] And the reason that the Levitical priesthood couldn't continue was because it couldn't make anything perfect. It was merely for a period of time made up of ceremonial rituals and sacrifices.
[3:07] But none of these things were pleasing to God. They were inadequate to deal with the greatest problem that man has, which is the problems of our heart, the problem of sin, from which every other problem that's in this world has stemmed from.
[3:29] So, the priesthood that was bringing these things before the Israelites was sufficient for a time to help them to understand the sinfulness of their hearts and their need of a saviour, their need of a greater priest than any of the Levitical order.
[3:54] So, when the Messiah came, he would occupy the office that had been prophesied concerning him. Because David had prophesied in Psalm 110 that the Father would say to the Son, You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.
[4:17] So, the first thing that we want to consider together is that Judaism has passed away. That is the religion of the Jewish people, which was made up of ceremonies and rituals.
[4:34] In verse 18, he says, For on the one hand, a former commandment is set aside because of its weakness and uselessness.
[4:45] For the law made nothing perfect. Now, in verse 12, the apostle has affirmed that the priesthood has changed.
[5:00] That is the priesthood that they were familiar with, the Aaronic priesthood. For when there is a change in the priesthood, there is necessarily a change in the law as well.
[5:13] So, what he is saying there is that now that the Lord Jesus Christ has come on the scene, the Aaronic priesthood must pass away.
[5:24] But that is not all that is going to pass away. The ceremonies and the rituals that were being performed up until this stage is also to pass away.
[5:35] Because that was the former commandment that was given to them, which he speaks of there in verse 18. It was of divine authority.
[5:47] And it was appointed and designated to continue until the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. So, this former commandment regulated the worship that God's people offered up to God in obedience to what he had revealed to them that they were to do, which was given to Moses.
[6:14] But this has now been cancelled, he says. And a new law of worship has been given. Through Jeremiah, in chapter 31, God made known to the church that a new covenant would be established.
[6:33] And once that new covenant was established, the old covenant would be revoked. And this brings us to ask the question, well, how was that done?
[6:48] Well, first of all, it was done away with by Christ's coming. Because he fulfilled and accomplished everything that their ceremonial rituals and sacrifices were pointing to.
[7:05] We've been considering over the last couple of evenings the types that we have in the Old Testament dispensation. and Melchizedek was a type of Christ and how all of these types were shadows pointing to the one who was casting the shadow, the Lord Jesus Christ.
[7:30] So that when he came, he fulfilled everything that was being shown forth by the ceremonies that they had been performing and the animals that they had been sacrificing.
[7:43] And when the Lord instituted the new covenant of the Lord's Supper and the symbols of that covenant, the Lord's Supper and baptism, they're different sacraments to the Old Testament.
[8:07] Because these are the only two sacraments that we have in the New Testament, but there were numerous sacraments in the Old Testament. What were sacraments?
[8:18] Signs and symbols. Things that were presenting a picture as I spoke to the children. And they were all pointing to the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.
[8:31] Now the New Testament sacraments are pointing to Christ having come and finished the work that the sacraments of the Old Testament were pointing to.
[8:50] Because he gave fullness to all of these things. He presented the perfect sacrifice. He was the perfect high priest who was without spot and blemish himself.
[9:06] The one who had from eternity been in communion with God. The one who can represent us as his people if we believe in him.
[9:18] And that's what was fulfilled when he came. Now thirdly, we're told in the book of Acts in chapter 15, when the first General Assembly met, that this was one of the questions that was discussed by that General Assembly.
[9:44] Because some of the converted Pharisees were insisting that although they had converted to Christianity and although they came to understand that this was the fulfillment of what was being shown forth by the ceremonies that they had been practicing all these years, they were insisting that they should still keep these ceremonies.
[10:14] That people should still be circumcised. That's what they were emphasizing above all of the other sacraments that they had in the Old Testament.
[10:25] And that first General Assembly ruled that there was no further need for these sacraments to be practiced and these rituals and ceremonies because they had all been fulfilled by the Lord Jesus Christ.
[10:48] And fourthly, AD 70, God providentially allowed Jerusalem and the temple in Jerusalem to be destroyed.
[11:04] And this was to impress upon the Jews who were still worshipping at the temple and still performing these rituals that these rituals were no longer required to worship God.
[11:20] So because they were refusing to let them go, he was forced to destroy the temple in which they were being practiced. So in verse 18, the apostle is telling us that the whole system under the Old Testament dispensation was useless.
[11:43] Well, how can something that God himself instituted be useless? Well, in the first place, the sacrifices that they were offering up could never make atonement for their sins.
[12:00] And that's why they had to continually keep on offering up these sacrifices. Because they were never giving full satisfaction to God that their sins had been atoned for.
[12:16] So, there was a greater need of something better. because or though he for a time instituted that these things were to be used in the act of worship, that they were actually useless.
[12:38] They were just something that was to aid them, to help them to come to understand the seriousness of the problem of sin and the desperate needs that they had of a great high priest that could actually continue to represent them forever.
[13:02] Now, when they were given, that was the purpose that they were designed to achieve. Paul tells us writing to the Galatians because the Galatians, although they had come to accept the Lord Jesus Christ, they then went back to the ceremonial law.
[13:25] And they started using the rituals and the ceremonies that they had under the Old Testament dispensation. And Paul tells the Galatians that these things were added because of transgression until the seed should come to whom the promise was made.
[13:46] These things, he says, was only for a time until Christ, the promised seed, the seed promised to Eve, the seed promised to Abraham, the seed promised to David, until he came.
[14:00] These things were in place, but once he came, these things have passed away. And he calls them foolish, foolish Galatians who began in the spirit and now you're going back to the flesh.
[14:15] these things were to reveal sin to us. And in revealing sin to us, to a certain extent, it was to restrain us from sinning.
[14:34] These things were revealed to us to show us what our sins deserved, how our bodies are to be broken up, how fire from heaven ought to come down to consume us.
[14:48] That's what the sacrifices were showing. That's what the Lord's Supper is showing, the broken body of Christ. He's the one who has fulfilled everything that these ceremonies and sacrifices were pointing to.
[15:06] They were just for a time. Because these things could never make atonement for our sins. these things were there to make known to us our need of a saviour.
[15:20] And that's what Paul says. They were our school teacher to lead us to Christ who could fulfill everything that these things depicted.
[15:34] But now Christ has come. And these things are useless, he says. For on the one hand, the former commandment is set aside because of its weakness and uselessness.
[15:50] And that brings us to the second thing that we want to consider. Judaism has passed and Christianity is being established.
[16:02] He goes on to say in verse 19, on the other hand, a better hope is introduced through which we now draw near to God.
[16:16] Here the apostle introduces us to what has replaced the Mosaic rituals, the Levitical priesthood, because these laws made nothing perfect, the ceremonial law.
[16:32] It didn't make the church perfect. It didn't make the worship of God perfect. It didn't perfect the covenant made between God and man.
[16:47] It was a shadow of what God was going to establish. It typified all of these things. They were types, just as Melchizedek was a type of the priesthood of the Lord Jesus Christ.
[17:05] It made nothing perfect. And we could ask the question, well, if that's the case, why didn't God send his son sooner and not bother with introducing the ceremonial law at all?
[17:21] Well, it's believed that he wanted to teach the church the seriousness of sin and the misery that sin has brought into our experience.
[17:36] And he wanted to teach us that before he sent his son because he wanted for the glory of his son to shine. Now, if you're at home in the daytime and you switch on your light switch, it doesn't really make much difference.
[17:57] because it's still bright. But if you're at home at nighttime, if you switch on the light in your home, in whichever room you go into, it makes a world of difference.
[18:16] So we needed to appreciate the darkness, the doom and the gloom that sin brought into our experience, the seriousness of being separated from God and our need of being reconciled to God and establishing a relationship with him again.
[18:36] So we needed to be convinced of our sins before we are enlightened in the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ.
[18:46] Now, the law brings before us the doom and the gloom, the misery that sin has brought into our experience. And when we realize the darkness, then the light that Christ brought into the world is far more precious, especially when he delivers us.
[19:09] God's glory that is but if the law had made anything perfect, then we would never have seen the glory of God as it's revealed to us in the face of Jesus Christ.
[19:25] Because Christ is at the center of all of God's work. He is the key to all of our problems. All things are directed towards his honor and his glory.
[19:42] Now, the system of Judaism, with all the mysteries and all the shadows, served as a suitable background from which God might shine the glory that he possesses.
[20:02] And he shines in his full glory. And as we come to know the Lord Jesus Christ, and as we continue to grow in our knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ, we see more of the glory of God.
[20:23] And rather than progress to the point that we're accumulating more and more information concerning him, bringing us to a point that we will have full information, the effect that it has on us is that the more that we learn of the knowledge of the true God, the more we come to understand just how little we actually do know.
[20:57] So as we grow in knowledge, we grow in our lack of knowledge. Because as we grow in the knowledge of who he actually is, we see just how great he actually is.
[21:12] And the more we grow in that knowledge, the greater he becomes for us. So we're seeing more and more of the glory of God as we come to know him through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
[21:29] He becomes more glorious. the blaze of God's glory is dispelling all of the darkness. And as John wrote in his letter, the darkness is passing and the true light is now shining.
[21:47] This was the hope of the spiritually enlightened church of the Old Testament. That's why they were longing for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.
[22:00] This is what was promised. That when this seed would come first given as a promise to Eve, that he would reverse the destruction that sin had brought into their experience.
[22:17] This was the promise that was given to Abraham, that it was through his seed that all the nations of the world would be blessed as we considered on Friday evening, that the priesthood that Melchizedek typified was a universal priesthood.
[22:37] It wasn't a universal priesthood, it wasn't a priesthood confined to the Jewish people. It was a priesthood for all nations, for the whole world.
[22:49] And that's the promise that was given to Abraham, that of his seed, all the nations of the world would be blessed. And that's the promise that was given to David, that of his seed one would come that would sit on his throne forever.
[23:11] Where was his throne? Well, his throne typified the throne of the Lord Jesus Christ, the throne of heaven.
[23:21] throne of the throne, the son of David, the Lord Jesus Christ, is sitting there in our nature, ruling the whole universe.
[23:40] earth. It's an awesome thought. As Rabbi Duncan once said, that the dust of the earth is sitting on the throne of the universe.
[24:00] He took our nature, made of the dust of the earth. He finished the work that the Father had given him to do. He rose and ascended into heaven, where the Father said, sit here on my throne beside me.
[24:18] And when John saw him in the great revelation given to him, he saw the lamb that was slain where? Sitting in the throne, in the midst of the throne, the one who's ruling the universe.
[24:32] And not only is he fulfilling the office of the kingship, but until all of his people are brought home, he ever lives there to make intercession for us.
[24:44] He's fulfilling the office of his priesthood. And this is why Abraham rejoiced to see his day.
[24:58] This is why Simeon was waiting for the consolation of Israel. when this child was brought into the temple by his parents.
[25:09] This is what Anna thanked God for. And this is what she began to proclaim to all who were waiting with the same anticipation of the coming of this seed to be born into the world, who was going to fulfill everything that was being foreshadowed by the rituals and the ceremonies that they had been practicing all of these years.
[25:39] Because sin had separated us from a holy God and this Savior was the only one that could reconcile us back to that God.
[25:52] And this is what he accomplished. this is the work that he finished when he gave his own life as a sacrifice for our sins.
[26:07] And now that he has finished that work, the right and the privilege of all believers is that we can come boldly to the throne of grace, which he goes on to say in chapter 10, therefore brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way that has been opened for us through the curtain, that is through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.
[27:01] This is the new and the living way that has been opened for sinners such as you and I to enter into the presence of God.
[27:15] We don't need to go through any rituals or present any sacrifices. We don't need to come to any earthly high priest or priest.
[27:29] We can come directly into the presence of God because Jesus has presented the perfect sacrifice for our sins, and he has entered into the presence of God, the veil of the temple having now been ripped from top to bottom, signifying that his death has opened a way into the presence of God, that he as our high priest has presented the perfect sacrifice to make atonement for our sins, and that he is there in God's presence to represent us, clothing us in his own righteousness.
[28:10] He is our forerunner. He is the perfect high priest, and this was the hope that was always given to his people, foreshadowed in the rituals performed in the Old Testament, but it was something that God had promised from the beginning of time, from the moment that we sinned against him.
[28:38] This is the hope, because we read in verse 21, but this one was made a priest with an oath by the one who said to him, the Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, you are a priest forever.
[28:59] There are many things defective in the priesthood under the law, because God never intended that his people would continue under that institution.
[29:15] But the sacrifice and the priesthood of the Lord Jesus Christ gives us a far better hope, gives us a sure hope, and it's sure because this is the hope that God has given us by an oath.
[29:37] The apostle tells us that Aaron's priesthood was not given by oath. In verse 20, and it was not without an oath, for those who formerly became priests were made such without an oath.
[29:54] But in verse 21, he says, but this one, meaning the Lord Jesus Christ, was made a priest with an oath by the one who said to him, the Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, you are a priest forever.
[30:15] God can never change his mind. And this is what he has promised. In the same way that he swore to Abraham, surely with blessings I will bless you.
[30:34] By two immutable things on which it is impossible for God to lie, we have an abundance of assurance in this hope which the apostle had been dealing with at the end of chapter 6.
[30:52] We have this hope because of the priesthood of Jesus which cannot be altered. And it cannot be altered because the Lord has sworn.
[31:06] And if the Lord has sworn, he cannot change his mind. God never placed himself under oath with respect to blessing and showing mercy to sinners, except where he had his own son and you.
[31:27] He swore by himself to Abraham that his seed would be a blessing to all the nations. Similarly, he swore to David that his seed would sit on his throne forever.
[31:46] When did he make that oath? Well, the person that's taking the oath is the father. father. To whom did he make it? He made it to his son.
[31:57] When did he make it? He made it in eternity. Because his son was the lamb that was sacrificed from before the foundations of the world.
[32:12] That's what John saw in the revelation. God said, so this covenant that has been set up was established before anybody was ever brought in to be.
[32:25] So that as soon as man sinned, this covenant entered in and he could give the promise immediately that of the seed of the woman one would come who would bruise the head of the serpent.
[32:38] This is the covenant of grace that was set up by the persons of the Godhead before they brought man into existence.
[32:52] This is the covenant that now stands. This is what we are remembering here today that all that was typified under the Old Testament dispensation has been fulfilled by the Lord Jesus Christ that he gave the perfect sacrifice and that he rose and ascended into heaven and that he's going to come again and he's going to come again and he's going to raise up his own people to join him and to invite them come and inherit the kingdom that was prepared for you when?
[33:41] From before the foundations of the world because this was God's plan from all of eternity. Nothing happened by chance.
[33:52] There were no accidents. When Jesus was put to death it wasn't something that took God by surprise or Jesus himself by surprise. it's what he had planned because this is how they were going to see his glory.
[34:11] This is how they were going to be saved from the destruction that sin would bring into their experience. And this is why we gather to worship him.
[34:24] And our desire is that we would be able to worship him as the angels and the just spirits that are in heaven surrounding his throne. And what grieves us so often is that we're not able to give him what we know he deserves.
[34:44] What a saviour. What a saviour we have in Jesus. Well we're going to leave it there. That God would bless to us these thoughts.
[34:56] And we're going to sing from Psalm 110. Psalm 110. On page 149. And here we have the Father speaking to the Son as he ascends into heaven.
[35:20] The Lord said to my Lord, sit here at my right hand until I make your foes a stool on which your feet may stand. The Lord will make your reign extend from Sion Hill with royal power.
[35:36] You rule among those who oppose your will. When you display your power, your people flock to you. At dawn arrayed in holiness, your youth will come like you.
[35:49] Unchangeably, the Lord with solemn purpose swore, just like Melchizedek, you are a priest forevermore. We'll sing these verses.
[36:01] The Lord said to my Lord, sit here at my right hand. The Lord said to my Lord, sit here at my white hand.
[36:24] Until I make your foes a stool on which your feet may stand, the Lord will make your way, extend from Zion's hell.
[36:55] With royal power, you'll rule among those who oppose your will.
[37:11] When you display your power, your people flock to you.
[37:26] Adonate your maiden holiness, your youth will come like you.
[37:43] Unchangeably the Lord with soul and power but soar.
[37:56] more just like Melchizedek you are the priest forever more.
[38:17] Now just a few words to fence the table of the Lord. it's quite clear from the scriptures that not everybody is to partake of the Lord's supper.
[38:36] We can all come to sit under the gospel being preached but we're not all required or we're not all to come and partake of the gospel that's preached in the Lord's supper because unless we have an interest in the Lord Jesus Christ that's been remembered then we shouldn't partake of the supper.
[39:06] But if we do have an interest if we do trust in him as our great high priest if we have been convinced of our sinfulness and our need of being saved from our sins then we are to come to the table and we're to partake of the elements that remind us of the expense of our salvation the price that had to be paid in order for us who sinned against God might be reconciled to him.
[39:50] Now we're all on our journey regardless of who we are in the building or regardless of who the people outside the building are everybody's on our journey and we're journeying towards death and after death we're going to stand at the judgment seat of God God under one of two covenants a covenant of works or a covenant of grace if we continue as we were born into this world we are under a covenant of works and even if you come to church regularly and read your Bibles regularly and pray to God regularly if you're trusting in these rituals and ceremonies let me assure you they're useless they're useless for your salvation they can be useful but they are useless concerning your salvation salvation because you will never be able to do perfectly what God requires you to do and it doesn't matter what sacrifices you're prepared to make they will not satisfy the debt that you owe but if you're coming to him trusting in the
[41:30] Lord Jesus Christ then as you stand at the judgment Christ is there as your high priest to tell the father I paid the price for this one I've paid the penalty for his or her sins this person is acquitted it's not that he's innocent we're all guilty but we're acquitted we're acquitted because God found satisfaction in the penalty that was paid on our behalf and we will enter into the glory that Christ has prepared for his people and if you haven't yet trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ then I would urge you to make his because you don't know when your time here is going to come to an end and when you will appear at the judgment seat and the question for all of us is how are we going to stand at the judgment seat of Christ are we going to seek to satisfy
[42:48] God with our own efforts which the scriptures make perfectly clear to us come so very far short of the standard that God is going to require because God is perfect and he will be satisfied with nothing less than perfection or are we going to come trusting in the one that gave him what he required the perfect sacrifice the perfect life the perfect fulfillment of his law and the perfect payment to make atonement for our sins and if we come trusting in him then we are to partake of the supper because we have reason to celebrate and this is a time of rejoicing!
[43:44] This is a time of refreshing our memories on our standing before God and I know that Satan seeks to disturb people by trying to convince them that they're not worthy and he's telling the truth we are not worthy but we're not coming because we think we are worthy if we have faith in Jesus Christ we've been convinced of that we've been convinced of our own sinfulness and we're coming because we acknowledge that we are sinners and that we are willing to accept the saviour of sinners who stands in our place and that's our reason to rejoice because this priest cannot fail this was the priest anointed by God himself to whom he swore and promised that he would not change his mind that he would continue as our priest forever which was foreshadowed by Melchizedek well that's the questions that we must ask ourselves as we examine ourselves and if we've examined ourselves and found that we want to be found in the Lord
[45:11] Jesus Christ then we are to come and we are to eat so as we sing the next psalm if you haven't already come to the table I invite you to do so and to take your rightful place at the Lord's table we're going to sing in psalm 118 on page 398 and we're going to sing from verse 15 psalm 118 and we're going to sing from verse 15 and we'll continue singing until everybody that's coming to the table comes to it and the elders put the elements onto the table from verse 15 and dwellings of the righteous has heard the melody of joy and health the Lord's right hand doth ever valiantly the right hand of the mighty
[46:16] Lord exalted is on high the right hand of the mighty Lord doth ever valiantly we're going to sing as I said until everybody's in their rightful place and the elements are placed on the table in dwellings of the righteous is heard the melody of joy and health the Lord and health the Lord of the night of the
[47:18] The right hand of the mighty Lord, Exalted on high, The right hand of the mighty Lord, Doth ever valiantly, I shall not die, But live, And shall the works of God discover, The Lord doth me,
[48:22] Trust thy set sword, But not to death give no fire, O set ye open unto me, The gates of righteousness, Then will I enter into them, And I the Lord well bless, This is the gate of God,
[49:24] The Lord by it, The judge shall enter, And are in thee, Well I praise, For thou be heard, And hast my safety been.
[49:56] Amen. We read at the beginning of our service from Genesis, And we saw there Melchizedek coming out to meet with Abraham, And that he brought bread and wine with them to refresh them, Because they had been engaged in battle, And as we sit here at the Lord's table, We might be well aware of the battle that we're engaged in, And maybe Satan is even trying to make you uncomfortable, As you sit at the table, As you sit at the table, Well be refreshed and be strengthened, Because our great high priest that was tuplified by Melchizedek, Brings us bread and wine,
[50:58] As our king, As our king, He provides bread for us, Because that's what rulers ought to do, They ought to be able to satisfy the needs of the people that are the citizens of their kingdom, And that's what our Lord does for all who are the citizens of his kingdom.
[51:30] He comes out to meet us as our king, To give us the provisions that we are in need of. And not only does he come to meet us as our king, He comes to meet us as our great high priest.
[51:50] Who is able to bless us with greater blessings than bread and wine. That's what Melchizedek did for Abraham, And for those who were with him.
[52:10] He pronounced God's blessing upon them, Because he was the high priest of the Most High God.
[52:21] Our Lord and Saviour is the priest anointed by the Most High God. And as he comes to meet with us here today, He has come to pronounce his blessing upon us.
[52:40] He has come to benedict us. He has come to assure us. That if we're trusting in him, that we are clothed with the right clothing.
[52:55] That we can rightfully come to the supper that he has prepared for his people. Remember, he spoke of the parable of those who came to the feast, And he found one there that didn't have the right clothing on.
[53:15] But he assures those who have responded to his invitation, And to have prepared themselves, And to have clothed themselves in the clothing that he has prepared for them.
[53:29] That they can continue to enjoy the feast. That he's prepared for us in the presence of our enemies.
[53:40] Because we're still surrounded by our enemies. We have the enemy from within our own sinful desires. We have the enemy around us, the world that hates us.
[53:57] And we have the more subtle enemy around about us, Which we cannot discern very often. Who continually seeks to sow seed into our minds.
[54:10] And can be very successful in doing so. To discourage us. But be encouraged. Because our great high priest ever looms to make intercession for us.
[54:26] And we have a picture of the high priest of the exiles when they returned. Joshua standing before God.
[54:38] And Satan there accusing him. And the Lord saying to Satan, The Lord rebuke you, O Satan. Is this not a brand plugged out of the body?
[54:53] And he's there clothed in his own filthy clothing. And he commands that these clothing be taken off Joshua. And that he be clothed with clean clothing.
[55:07] If we're here trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ, we've got the right clothing on. We've got the righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ.
[55:18] And we can say to Satan, The Lord rebuke you, O Satan. Because I know that I'm not here because of my worthiness. I know the filthiness of my own nature.
[55:32] But the Lord rebuke you, O Satan. Because I'm here clothed in the righteousness of my Savior Jesus Christ. And he ever lives to make intercession for me.
[55:47] So I'm not trusting in my own religious rituals. I'm trusting in the intercession that he ever lives to make on my behalf.
[55:58] Which makes me worthy to take my place here at this table. And to partake of this feast.
[56:09] We read on the night that the Lord instituted the supper. That Paul says concerning it, I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you.
[56:24] That the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread. And when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, This is my body which is for you.
[56:36] Do this in remembrance of me. And in the same way also he took the cup after supper saying, This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this as often as you drink it in remembrance of me.
[56:51] But as often as you eat of this bread and drink of this cup, You proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. We'll follow the Lord's example and we'll give thanks.
[57:06] We come before you, O Lord, to give thanks. We're well aware that we're not half or even a fraction of our thankfulness we ought to be.
[57:18] But we're thankful that you are willing to accept us as we are. In all the unabilities that belong to us.
[57:29] Because we're not trusting in any of our own capabilities. We recognize that they all come so very far short. But we're trusting in the capabilities of our great High Priest, our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.
[57:48] The one who has finished the work which you, our Father, gave him to do. And he fully satisfied you. He glorified your name.
[57:59] And now, Father, we're asking you that you would glorify your Son. That you would pronounce your benediction upon the people that he died to secure their salvation.
[58:14] And we ask as we partake of these elements that remind us of the cost of our salvation. That we would do so to your glory.
[58:27] That we would do so with thankfulness in our hearts. And that we would do so so that we might be refreshed in our souls. And having this brought before us again.
[58:41] To remind us that it's in Christ that we find our standing before you. And we give you thanks that that's how it is. That we are not under a covenant of works.
[58:54] But that we are under a covenant of grace. Whereby you can remain just. And you can show mercy to sinners such as we are.
[59:06] And that's how we come. And we come in the name of Jesus. Amen. We read there that on the night that he was betrayed that the Lord took bread.
[59:21] That he broke it. And said, this is my body which is broken for you. Do this in remembrance of me. And after supper being ended that he took the cup.
[59:38] Saying, this cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this as often as you drink it. And drink it. For as often as you eat of this bread.
[59:51] And drink of this cup. You do show forth the Lord's death. Until he comes. To the ending of the night. To the ending of the night. To the ending of the night.
[60:02] To the ending of the night. To the ending of the night. To the ending of the night. To the ending of night. To the ending of night. To the ending of night. To the ending of night. To the ending of night. Amen. Amen. Amen.
[60:13] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
[60:25] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Now that we've been reminded of our standing before God, as we've come before him to be encouraged in our faith, we could ask, well, what now?
[60:51] What does he expect of me now that he saved me? Well, he has commissioned all who are his disciples to go forth.
[61:05] Before he has ended up on high, the Lord Jesus Christ told his disciples, All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
[61:23] Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.
[61:37] And behold, I am with you always to the end of the age. This is the second sacrament that we have under the new covenant.
[61:51] And he commissions his people to be his witnesses, to go forth and to seek to bring more into the kingdom.
[62:06] Because there is room in the kingdom for everyone. Because everybody that comes to Jesus, he will in no wise cast out any of them.
[62:17] And he's asking his disciples to go forth and to baptize people into his name, bring them into his kingdom, associate them with Christianity, associate them with the knowledge of the new covenant.
[62:36] and he's asking his disciples to be his people to be his people. And he's asking his people to be his people to be his people. We are under grace. And he's wanting people to know that.
[62:50] That he is able to save sinners to the uttermost. Regardless of how sinful a person might be, you're not going to be saved as a result of your good works in any case.
[63:03] And he's prepared and able to save you. If you're the worst sinner that ever lived, his blood is sufficient to make atonement for all of our sins.
[63:20] And he's inviting us to go out to proclaim that news, assuring us that all authority in heaven and on earth belong to him.
[63:31] He is able to empower us. He is able to give us the strength to give obedience to what he commands us to do.
[63:44] And he promises us that he will be with us until the end of the age. In other words, until he comes again. And that's what we've been reminded of as we partake of the Lord's Supper.
[64:01] We're remembering what he's done for us. But we're also reminded he is coming again. And we ought to be looking forward to that time, not knowing when that time might come.
[64:17] He could come at a time when we least expect him. And we ought not to be caught off guard, wasting our time in the things of this world when he's commissioned us to set our hearts on the things of his world, the things that belong to the kingdom of heaven.
[64:39] Because if we are citizens in that kingdom, surely that's where our heart lies. And we ought to feel a homesickness for our homeland.
[64:54] We ought to be longing for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Because in this world, we are experiencing the miseries that sin brought into our experience.
[65:12] And we ought not to be content with that. We ought to want to fully escape everything that the curse that came down upon us as a result of our sins may be taken away.
[65:29] And that we may be delivered into the place where there will be no more curse. And as a result, there will be no more effects of the curse.
[65:40] There'll be no more sickness. There'll be no more aging process. There'll be no more infirmities of old age. There'll be no more threat of death.
[65:53] Because Christ has made it possible for all of these things to be taken away from us. And we will enter into the eternal glory that he has prepared for his people.
[66:09] We ought to long for that. And that ought to be at the forefront of our minds every day that we awake. and ask ourselves, is this the day that he's going to come?
[66:24] Because he is going to come. And he's going to come possibly when we least expect it. So let us be ready. And when he comes, let him find us engaged in the work that he's commissioned us to do.
[66:42] That we would be his witnesses and seek to bring this good news to the world that we live in. Well may God grant that he would bless to us these thoughts.
[66:55] Let's just bow our heads in a word of prayer. Our Father in heaven, we give you thanks for the way that you uphold us and enable us to do things that we know that would have been impossible for us to do left to ourselves.
[67:15] So we thank you for the grace that you continually bestow upon us. And we pray that you would enable us to live from day to day dependent upon your grace and going forward in your strength until you do come again to receive us unto yourself.
[67:35] And until that day that you would continue to cleanse us from our sins. For we ask it in Jesus' name. Amen. We're going to conclude by singing in Psalm 72, the last three verses.
[67:52] This name forever shall endure, last like the sun it shall. Men shall be blessed in him, and blessed all nations shall him call. Now blessed be the Lord our God, the God of Israel, for he alone doth wondrous works in glory that excel.
[68:12] These last three verses. This name forever shall endure, last like the sun it shall. Amen. Amen. His name forever shall endure, last life the sun it shall.
[68:41] Men shall be blessed in heaven, blessed all nations shall have come.
[69:00] Now blessed be the Lord our God, the God of Israel.
[69:18] For he alone does wondrous works, glory that excel.
[69:39] And blessed be his glorious name to all eternity.
[69:58] The whole earth let his glory fill. Amen.
[70:14] So let it be. Now may the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father and fellowship of the Holy Spirit, rest and abide with you all, now and forevermore. Amen.
[70:32] Amen.