Well, good morning, Friendship Church. It's exciting to be here with you this morning. Why don't we stand and worship together the one who is over all.
I was buried beneath my shame Who could carry that kind of weight? It was my tomb Till I met you I was breathing my nights of life On my face I tried to hide It was my tune Till I met you You called my name and I ran out of that grave. Out of the darkness into your glorious day.
You called my name and I ran out of that grave. Out of the darkness. to your glorious day You see I saved my soul Now your freedom is all that I know The hour they knew Jesus, I met you When you called my name And I ran out of that grave Out of the darkness Into your glorious day You called my name And I ran out of that grave guitar solo I was heavy, but chains break at the weight of your glory.
I needed shelter, I was an orphan, now you call me a citizen of heaven. I was broken, you were my healing, and your love is the air that I'm breathing. I have a future, my eyes are open, cause when you call my name. I ran out of that grave Out of the darkness To your glorious day You called my name And I ran out of that grave To your glorious day!
Waves after wave, mercy arriving again and again Your love will be my guide Find us, you're never far away Battles behind us, battles ahead God, you are for us, so what stands against? We have this promise that you're never far away We see your faithfulness in the darkest night. We see your goodness, God, favor on our lives. Everywhere we go, your grace is on our side.
Your grace is on our side. He's behind us, battles ahead God, you are for us, so what stands against? We have this promise that you're never far away We see your faithfulness in the darkest night.
We see your goodness, God, favor on our life. Everywhere we go, your grace is on our side. Your grace is on our side. Whatever comes our way, God be lifted high. Your love will never fail.
We will testify. Everywhere we go, From glory to glory in Jesus'name. From mourning to dancing in Jesus'name. From battle to blessing we go in Jesus'name. From glory to glory in Jesus'name.
From mourning to dancing in Jesus'name. From battle to blessing we go in Jesus'name. in Jesus name we see your faithfulness in the darkest night we see your goodness God favor on our lives everywhere we go your grace is on our side Your grace is on our side.
Whatever comes our way, God be lifted high. Your love will never fail. We will testify. Everywhere we go, your grace is on our side.
Your grace is on our side. Amen for God's grace. Well, once again, we are so glad that you're here today. Welcome to Friendship Church.
If you're new, extra special welcome for you. And as you came in today, everyone was given a connect card. Please fill those out so we know who you are.
And on the back side, there's a place for prayer requests. And everyone, please feel free to fill those out. We love to pray for you throughout the week.
And with that, please take a seat and turn your attentions to the screen. As we finish here our worshiping God, we not only hear songs, history, or purpose, but also Two, there's not a right Christian hip-hop or Christian tech- And when we worship Him in ways that we really enjoy, that's a blessing to us in God. And when we worship Him in ways that we might not enjoy, that's sacrificial.
And it helps us to practice humility in worship. But at the end of the day, we have to... Stop us from worshiping the Lord. And number three, sound doctrine is so important. The music industry is so full of Christian music.
And my hope is that you will be conscious of what you're listening to. and worshiping with and comparing it back to scripture. All right, so it's December.
Have you ever stopped to think about the angels we read about in scripture? There's Gabriel. Michael, Lucifer, well he was an angel, but why don't we ever hear about the angel named Hark?
Oh man, that's terrible. I'm so sorry church fam. It's a terrible joke, but now I know that you definitely know the hymn for December.
That's right, Hark the Herald Angels Sing, not What hark the herald angel sings. This hymn was written in 1739 by Charles Wesley and it's comprised of three different verses. In verse one, we see it's sharing the good news of the Savior's birth and that he has come to reconcile God and sinners.
Verse two goes on to describe the mystery of Christ coming into this world, being born to a virgin and how he is God in flesh. And then verse 3 goes on to describe the power of Jesus Christ. Think specifically about his death and resurrection, and how from Jesus'birth, he was born that man no more may die. Born to give man second birth. There's no other way for man to enter heaven than through Jesus Christ.
Jesus is God's plan for redemption. The word hark, it means listen. In a season so filled with the busyness of life and work and traditions, be reminded this year to pause and listen. Listen to the story of Jesus'birth with renewed ears and listen to the spirits leading in your life. Maybe this Christmas, He wants you to hear something new.
Hark, listen. angels sing glory to the newborn king peace on earth and mercy far all God and sin unreconciled Joyful all ye nations rise Join the triumph of the skies With angelic hosts proclaim Christ is born in Bethlehem, Hark the herald angels sing, Glory to the new-born King. Christ by highest heaven adored, Christ the everlasting Lord, Made in time, behold Him come, Offspring of... the virgins only build and flesh the God at sea held incarnate deity Jesus man and with them to dwell, Jesus our Emmanuel. Hark the herald angels sing, glory to the newborn King.
King of heaven come. King of heaven, call now. Let your glory reign, shining like the day.
King of heaven, call. King of heaven, rise up and stand against us. You are strong to save in your mighty name.
King of heaven, call. of peace. Hail the Son of Righteousness, light and life to all he brings, risen with healing in his wings. Mild He lays His glory by, Born that man no more may die, Born to raise the sons of earth, Born to give them second birth, Hark the herald angels sing, Glory to the newborn King! King of heaven, come.
Let your glory reign, shining light. King of heaven, come. King of heaven, rise up.
Who can stand against us? You are strong to save in your mighty name. King of Anger King of Heaven, come now, let your glory reign, shining like the day, King of Heaven, come.
King of heaven, please come into this place. May your Holy Spirit fill this room. May your spirit testify to the truth of your word. We pray as Matt comes up that your word would speak through him. That we would leave this place changed because of you.
Because of the work of your son Jesus. And it's in his name that we pray today. Amen. Please be seated.
Hey Joel, what do you call the day before Christmas Eve? What? Christmas Adam! Oh man. Hey Friendship Church, Joel here and I want to tell you about Christmas Eve this year.
We'll be having Christmas Eve services at both campuses at 3 and 4 30. And the 4 30 service will be our candlelight service at both campuses. And in addition to the normal wax candles we have we have these nice twisty turny battery operated candles. for the little kiddos. So this Christmas Eve, grab your friends, family, and even your neighbors and join us at Friendship Church as we adore and celebrate the birth of our King and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Joel's not even here today, and yet this whole service is just filled with Farber, isn't it? It's unbelievable. Oh, what a great weekend of worship and ministry this has been already.
Friday night, the building was loaded with kids and their parents for the connected Christmas celebration as kids spent time coloring and learning about Jesus and throwing fake snowballs at each other and all kinds of other fun stuff that went on here Friday night. And then back Saturday morning, the building was loaded with women for a great women's event. I mean, that's what I heard. I wasn't invited, but my understanding is it was a great women's event. I'm not bitter.
Not that bitter, right? Was it a great event? Anyone here? Absolutely. And then last night we had an opportunity to have our Spanish-speaking discipleship ministry meet here at the church.
It was the first time that they've had an opportunity to meet, so exciting weekend of ministry has been going on at Friendship Church and exciting that we get to come together as a family today to continue to worship Jesus. Before we get into the word today, before we start today's message. I'd love for us to spend a little bit of time praying together.
Jesus said that his house is meant to be a house of prayer, right? That God's house is meant to be a house of prayer. We're that house.
And God's intention is that we would be a people of prayer. And I'd love for us to spend a few minutes praying together before we get into the word. And so I'm going to ask you to bow your heads and I'm just going to lead you through some lines for you to pray about.
And as we do... Go ahead and just be praying silently in your hearts to the Lord. Jesus said, when you pray, pray then like this. Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.
Would you spend a moment just exalting God for who he is and what he has done? Hallow or exalt him. Jesus continued, Your kingdom come.
Would you pray right now for friends, family, co-workers, neighbors, who have not yet experienced the rule and reign of Jesus in their life? Would you pray for Jesus'kingdom and rule to come into their lives, that they would submit themselves to the King? Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Would you pray for God's will as he has expressed it in his word to be done in situations in your life?
Would you pray for God's expressed will to be done this morning? He has told us that he wants us together to be an encouragement to one another, to spur each other on towards love and good deeds. Would you pray for that?
He's told us that his will is that the word would be preached in season and out of season. Would you pray for that? He's told us that his desire is that we wouldn't just be hearers of the word, but that we would be doers of the word.
Would you pray for that this morning? Your will be done, Lord. Jesus continued, give us this day our daily bread.
Would you pray for the needs that you have and of those around you? Would you pray that God would meet the needs of Mary Barron's family today? Be their comfort and their strength.
And forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors. Would you confess any sin in your life, the sins that you struggle with? And lead us not into temptation. but deliver us from evil. Would you pray for those sins that entangle you most in your life?
Would you pray that you'd be free from temptation in those areas and when you face it, that God would be at work helping you to overcome that temptation? Father, this morning we come before you and we want to say thank you that we can call you Abba, Father. Lord, that you have invited us to draw near and to do so with boldness into the very throne room of God.
And we're thankful that you're not just our Father, you're our Father in heaven, who has made and sustains all things, and who has ultimate authority in order to do the things that are best in our life. And we trust you in that. In Jesus'name, amen. Today we come to the last day in our sermon series called Romans Road before we launch into our Christmas series next week, which is called Majesty. And over the course of the few weeks that we have been looking at the first four chapters, of the book of Romans, we have been using a diagram to remind us of the teachings that we have been seeing.
And I want to bring that diagram back for us this morning in order to remind us of what it is that we've seen as we've been looking at the book of Romans. The diagram shows the two possible pathways that Romans says a person can be on. And it says there are only two pathways that a person can be on.
One of those pathways is the path of obedience, love, and righteousness. The other pathway is the path of selfishness, disobedience, and sin. In Romans chapter 2, verses 5 through 8, says there will come a day of judgment. And on that day of judgment, those who are on the path of obedience and love will enter into fully the new and eternal life that God has for us as his people.
But it also said that on that day of judgment, those who remain on the path of selfishness and disobedience will experience what Romans 2.8 referred to as the wrath and fury of God. God's wrath poured out upon sin. We also recognize that one of the things that Romans has been very clear about is that we all start out walking this bottom path of selfishness and disobedience.
that we are not fundamentally and inherently good people, that we are sinful and selfish people. Romans 3, 10 and 11, none is righteous, no, not one. No one understands, no one seeks for God. All have sinned, all have fallen short of God's glorious purpose for their life.
God says everyone winds up walking this bottom path, starts out walking this bottom path, and if you wind up on that bottom path on the day of judgment, Then he says, what awaits is the wrath and fury of the Lord towards sin. So the natural question becomes, how do I move from that bottom path of death to the top path of life? And as we've been looking at this study of the book of Romans, we have seen several times how it is that a person can move from the bottom path to the top path in their life. But God wants to make sure that we are totally clear about this. And so in Romans chapter 4, he is going to review how it is a person can move from the path of death to the path of life.
How a person can be declared righteous before God. And when he's doing that, he's going to use an illustration. He's going to use one of the most famous people in the Old Testament as the foundation for his teaching in Romans chapter 4. A man named Abraham.
Father of the Jews. Some would call him the father of faith. And he's going to be that foundation that Paul's going to use for his teaching in Romans chapter 4 about how a person can move from the bottom path to the top path. And the first question that he's going to ask is, can a person move from the bottom path to the top path through good works? Is that possible?
Well, look at what he says. What then shall we say was gained by Abraham, our forefather, according to the flesh, according to his own work and his own effort? For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the scripture say? Abraham believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness.
Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift, but as his due. And to the one who does not work, but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is... counted as righteousness. Just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works.
Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin. Were you able to pick up on the theme word that runs throughout those first eight verses?
My guess is you were. It's the word counted or some of your Bibles may use the word credited. And the question is, how is it that we can be counted as righteous in the courtroom of God?
How is it that our sins cannot be counted against us? How can we be counted as being a part of that top path? Is it through our own good works and effort?
Paul says, absolutely not. Absolutely not. There are none of us who are good enough in order to earn our way to the top. path. Because the standard of righteousness is God's character.
We're to be holy as he is holy. We're to love as Jesus loved. 1 John 3.3, we're to be pure as God is pure. As he is perfect in truth and honesty. So we are to be perfect in truth and honesty.
We were made to be the image and the likeness of God himself. And the standard for us, if we're going to move to that top path on our own effort, is that we would have... the very character of God, totally and completely.
And how far short does my life fall of that perfect standard of God's character? It's beyond measure, isn't it? The difference between the life I've lived and the infinitely good, infinitely perfect character of God is beyond measure.
And yet it's so easy for me as a person, and I think for all of us as people, to look around at other people and feel pretty good about our standing, right? Anybody ever do this? Look around at other people and feel pretty good about our standing. I mean, I'm not Hitler.
I'm not Stalin. I feel pretty good about myself. When I compare myself to that actor who's on Wife No. 5, I feel pretty good about myself. When I watch all of that chaos in the evening news, I feel pretty good about myself.
When I go on social media, I feel pretty good about myself. As long as I do what God has told us never to do, compare myself horizontally to others, I may be able to feel pretty good about myself. Because I'm deceptive enough in here to only measure myself against the kinds of people and in areas that make me feel pretty good about myself.
And to ignore those things that don't. But it is never God's design that we would measure ourselves against each other in order to feel pretty good about our standing. We are only and always to measure ourselves against his character in order to see how we're doing.
Doesn't it seem kind of silly to measure ourselves against others who fall infinitely short of the standard in order to feel good about ourselves? It's like God says, hey, I want everyone to be good. to jump to the moon, right?
How are you going to do with that, right? Everyone, the goal is to jump to the moon. Well, when I jump, my vertical jump is 24 inches.
And when you jump, your vertical jump is 12 inches, right? How much sense does it make for me to look over at your 12-inch vertical jump and experience a tremendous amount of pride in my 24-inch vertical jump, right? What is the aim again? It's to jump to the moon!
And so how far short of the moon does my 24-inch vertical jump leave me? 15.2 billion inches short. So it doesn't make a lot of sense for us to look around and say, well, but I think I can jump higher than most people.
I think I can jump higher than them. No, the goal is to jump to the moon. And we can't do it.
In the same sense, to be declared righteous, none of us can do that in our own self. The standard is the righteousness and perfection of God, and we all fall infinitely short of that standard. And so we cannot work our way there.
We cannot do enough good in order to be counted as righteous. And Abraham is proof for us that we do not become righteous based on our own good works. Because in the book of Genesis, God makes a promise to Abraham that he will become a great nation when Abraham has no kids whatsoever.
He's older and he's got no kids. And in Genesis chapter 15, verse 6, we're told that Abraham believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness. And Paul says here, How was it counted to him as righteousness?
Was it by his good works? Was it by his effort? No, that's not what Genesis says.
And that's true for all of us. We cannot be counted righteous. We cannot make it to the top path through our good works and our effort. That's never the cause of us moving from the bottom path to the top path. We can't do it.
Well, what's another possibility? He moves on and says, well, maybe through the right religious symbols. If we have the right religious symbols in our lives, we can be declared righteous and move from the bottom path to the top path.
Is this blessing then only for the circumcised? Or also for the uncircumcised? For we say that faith was counted to Abraham as righteousness.
How then was it counted to him? Was it before or after he had been circumcised? It was not after, but before he was circumcised. He received the sign of circumcision. as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised.
The purpose was to make him the father of all who believe without being circumcised, so that righteousness would be counted to them as well. And to make him the father of the circumcised who are not merely circumcised, but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised. That is a lot of circumcision again, right?
Good grief! Circumcision, uncircumcision, back and forth. Pretty soon I'm confused in all that he is saying there.
What was circumcision in the Old Testament? It was a symbol that you were a part of the covenant of God. It was a symbol that you were a part of the covenant of God. Can a person move to the top path by having a right symbol? No, that isn't what a symbol does.
Whether we're talking about circumcision in the Old Covenant, or particular symbols of the new covenant. That's not how a symbol works. A symbol never causes reality to come into being.
A symbol represents a reality that already exists, right? A symbol never causes a reality to come into being. A symbol represents a reality that already exists. And Paul says, you can tell this because Abraham was credited as righteous decades before he was ever circumcised.
God counted him as righteous decades before he was ever circumcised, so it certainly doesn't come through circumcision. I have a symbol up here of some things that I've accomplished in my life. It's a letterman's jacket.
And if you look at the, it's filled with symbols. And if you look at the symbols that are on my letterman's jacket, what you'll see here is that I've been a part of the girls'gymnastics team. Actually, I've been captain of the girls'gymnastics team. And I've participated in girls'swimming and girls'diving and girls'track and field. Apparently, I even have played in the orchestra over here.
There's a lot of different symbols that represent things that are true of my life. Now, some of you may be saying, I don't think that's true. I don't think you actually have captained a girls'gymnastics team. And I would say, of course I have. I have the symbol that proves it right here.
Look, I've clearly captained the girls'gymnastics team. That's not the way symbols work, is it? Because I have this symbol, does it mean there's a reality?
Does it cause that reality to come into being? I have the symbol, therefore... I have Captain to Girls Gymnastics Team. No, that's not the way symbols work.
Symbols represent something that is already a reality. And if the symbol doesn't represent something that's a reality, then the symbol's of no use whatsoever. As a matter of fact, the symbol is deceptive in that situation.
Symbols are never a way that we are able to move from the bottom path of death to the top path of life. Yes, we participate in some of those symbols once we move to the top path, but they're never the cause of us being able to move to the top path. We have all kinds of symbols that are a part of our Christian faith, whether we're talking about baptism, whether we're talking about walking an aisle, whether we're talking about saying a sinner's prayer, whether we're talking about taking communion.
These are symbols. The symbol never is a cause for moving to the upper path. They're simply a symbol for the reality that exists, the reality of faith that exists within a person. Can you move to the top path by having the right religious symbols? The answer is no.
So, what's left? Maybe I can move to the top path if I just really work at keeping the law. Really work at keeping the Old Testament law. For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law. Oh shoot, that doesn't sound good.
But through the righteousness of faith. For if it is the adherence of the law who are to be heirs, faith is null and the promise is void for the law brings wrath. But where there is no law, there is no transgression.
Somebody may be splitting hairs out there and they may be saying, well, it's not about good works and it's not about these symbols. It's about an exact adherence to the old Testament law. And Paul says, no, first of all, let's go back to our case study.
You can tell it's not about an exact adherence to the old Testament law by looking at Abraham. Because he was credited as righteous 430 years before the law was ever given to Israel. So of course it isn't about the law. He says, but even more than that, the law doesn't help anyone live in righteousness. The law helps us know what's right and wrong.
And the law convicts us when we do wrong. But it doesn't have any power to work within you. in order to give you the desire, what they used to refer to as the unction, to do what is right.
Paul says something else is required for that, for that change in your desires. The law teaches me that I'm not supposed to covet your things. And the law can convict me when I do covet your things, but the law has no power.
to change the desires that are within me so that I no longer covet your things. Something else is required for that. The law only brings a sense of wrongdoing and punishment for us. Something else is required to change us so that we can live in righteousness.
What is it? I can't move from the bottom path to the top path through good works, religious symbols, or the law. What is it that causes us to move from the bottom path of death to the top path of life?
You've probably picked it up along the way, correct? Yeah, absolutely. What is it?
Abraham believed God, verse 3, and it was counted to him as righteousness. Verse 5, and to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness. We say that... Faith was counted to Abraham as righteousness. Verse 10. Verse 11. He received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised.
Verse 13. For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith. Are you picking up what Paul is laying down here? How is it that a person can move from the bottom path to the top path?
He wants us to understand, and he's been a little bit repetitive here, so make sure that we get it. It's through belief and faith in Jesus alone. That is the only cause that moves a person from the bottom path to the top path. It's the only way.
It's through believing in Jesus Christ, the one and only Son of God. That's what he moves into even further in the next verses. Look at this.
That is why it depends on what? Faith. In order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring, not only to the adherent of the law, but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all. As it is written, I've made you the father of many nations in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.
It doesn't matter if you're a Jew who's been adhering to the law, if you're a Gentile who is only connected to Abraham through faith. He says it doesn't matter for everyone. Jew, Gentile alike, the only way to move from the path of death to the path of life is through faith. The reformer Martin Luther said, God the Father has made all things depend on faith, so that whoever has faith will have everything, and whoever does not have faith will have nothing.
How is it that a person can move from the bottom path to the top path? How is it that a person can be declared righteous? It's only through faith in Jesus Christ. And we see from Abraham's example that when we have that real and genuine faith in Jesus, it leads to obedience. It leads to loving God and being obedient to God.
Right? Now let's be clear again. No amount of obedience can move us from the bottom path to the top path. But when through faith we are declared right and we move from that bottom path to the top path, then what happens?
We enter into a life of obedience to God and love for Him. We are transformed. We are changed.
How did Abraham's faith lead to obedience? Look at this. In hope, he believed against hope. that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, so shall your offspring be. He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead, since he was about a hundred years old.
Or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah's womb. How old was she? Ninety.
No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. That is why his faith was counted to him as righteousness. How did Abraham's faith change his life?
How did Abraham's faith here lead to obedience so that we could see his faith as genuine? Where do we see that obedience? In the fact that he slept with his wife. Isn't that the obedience that we see here?
He slept with his wife when he was a hundred, and it says here his body was as good as dead. His wife was 90 and barren. Isaac was not a virgin birth, friends.
Isaac was a product of Abraham and Sarah coming together at age 190. Because he had faith in God's promise, he acted in obedience. Okay, now, I can see a number of guys around the room like, oh, I like this application. All right. This was a unique promise to Abraham here, friends.
I'm going to get myself in trouble. I better stop. What if Abraham said, yes, God, I believe I have faith in your promise and then never slept with his wife because he's like, well, I'm 100. She's 90. Would that be a genuine faith?
A genuine belief? No, because a genuine faith always leads to obedience. And that's what we see from Abraham here.
Same is true for us. If we say we believe that Jesus is Lord and King, and yet we continue to live in our lives with self as Lord and King, do we have a genuine faith in Jesus? That's why Jesus says in Matthew chapter seven, not everyone who says to me on that day, Lord, Lord, will enter to the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
Jesus says there's a lot of people who are going to claim, I had faith in you, Jesus. He says, but you can tell a genuine faith because a genuine faith always leads to loving God and being obedient to him. That obedience is never the cause of us moving from bottom path to top path. But when we move to the top path, it is a path of obedience. We enter into a kingdom that is a kingdom of obedience to our God and love for him.
Now these lessons about Abraham that Paul has been teaching here in Romans chapter 4, they're lessons that apply to all of our lives. Look at the last couple of verses here. But the words, it was counted to him, were not written for his sake alone, but for ours also.
It will be counted to us who believe in him. who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespass and raised for our justification. This isn't just about how Abraham went from the bottom path to the top path. Paul says this is information for all of us about how a person goes from the bottom path to the top path, how a person can be counted as righteous, how a person's sins cannot be counted against them.
How is that possible? It's possible through faith in Jesus. It doesn't come through good works, right?
We can't move from bottom path to top path. by doing enough good, or having enough religious symbols, or by being obedient enough to the law. That isn't how we are caused to move from bottom path to top path.
It only happens through faith in Jesus Christ. And so as we bring this series to an end, we all ask the question, do I have that kind of faith? Do I have a genuine and real faith in Jesus Christ? Let me just invite you to bow your heads for a minute and to consider that question as the worship team comes up here. Just spend some time with the Lord.
Do I have a genuine and real faith in Jesus? Most of you in the room have placed your faith in Jesus Christ and have moved to that top path of obedience and love and righteousness. And every time we come before the Lord's table, we celebrate what Jesus has done in order to make that possible.
We celebrate the bread that represents Christ's body that's been given for us. We celebrate the cup that represents his shed blood. so that our sins might not be counted against us, and we might be counted or credited as righteous before our God.
And so as we take these elements today, I'd encourage you to do so in full celebration of what Jesus has done, full celebration of the goodness of our God, and what he has done in order to deliver us from the pathway of death to the pathway of life, to bring us into that place of eternal life. The band's going to play for a moment and then we'll sing a song. I'd encourage you to make your way over to the communion tables and grab those elements.
If you're a follower of Jesus, bring those elements back to your seat with you. And then I'll come back up when we're done singing that song and lead us in the taking of those elements. Friends, spend a moment getting your heart right with the Lord, making sure that your focus is completely and totally on Him and His goodness. Yes. Amen.
You are here, moving in our midst. I worship you. I worship you.
You are here, working in this place. I worship you. I worship you. You are here.
Moving in our midst. I worship you. I worship you. You are here. Working in this place, I worship you, I worship you.
You are way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper, light in the darkness. My God, that is who you are. You are.
Wind maker, miracle worker, promise keeper, light in the darkness, my God, that is who you are. You are here, touching every heart. I worship you.
I worship you. You are here. Healing every heart, I worship you, I worship you.
You are here, turning lives around, I worship you, I worship you. You are here, mending every heart. I worship you.
I worship you. Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper, light in the darkness. My God, that is who you are. You are. Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper, light in the darkness, my God, that is who you are.
That is who you are. That is who you are. That is who you are.
Even when I don't see it, you're working. Even when I don't feel it, you're working. You never stop, you never stop working. You never stop, you never stop working.
Even when... I don't see that you're working Even when I don't Feel that you're working You never stop, you never Stop working, you never Stop, you never stop Working, even when I don't feel Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper Light in the darkness, my God, that is who you are Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper Light in the darkness, my God, that is who you are Would you take the elements of the Lord's Supper and stand with me? And as we take the bread, remember your Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who has died so that you might be declared righteous. Eat this all in remembrance of him.
And would you take the cup, the cup of the new covenant, the cup of forgiveness of sins? And drink it all in remembrance of our Lord and Savior, Jesus. We're going to enter into a time of taking our offering now as we give to the Lord some of what he has given to us. We do so with joy because we love him and we love his kingdom and we are thankful for the opportunity to express our love to him like this. So let's spend some time giving of our offerings and continuing to sing his praise and express our love to Jesus.
How great the chasm that lay between us, how high the mountain I could not climb. In desperation, I turned to heaven and spoke your name into the night. Then through the darkness, your loving kindness tore through the shadows of my soul. The work is finished, the end is written, Jesus Christ, my living hope.
Who could imagine so great a mercy? What heart could fathom such boundless grace? The God of Israel. Steps down from glory to wear my sin and bear my shame. The cross has spoken.
I am forgiven. The King of kings calls me his own. Beautiful Savior, I'm yours. forever jesus christ my living hope set me free i'll sit grip on me you can change You're shining your name, Jesus Christ, my living for you.
You have broken every chain. There's salvation in your name. Jesus Christ, my living King.
Seal the promise, your buried body began to breathe Out of the silence, the roaring lion Declared the grave has no claim on me Then came the morning That sealed the promise Your very body Began to breathe Out of the silence The rose I declare the grave has no claim on me. Jesus, yours is the victory. Praise the one who set me free. Hallelujah.
It's good for me There's salvation in your name Jesus Christ, my living hope It's the one who set me free It's good for me There's salvation in your name, Jesus Christ Amen. Jesus is our living hope. As we're dismissed today, there's three things I'd like to tell you about or remind you of. The first is that any of you who knew Mary Barron's are certainly invited to come back.
There'll be a visitation at two o'clock. clock and then a memorial service, a celebration of life that will be taking place at three o'clock. Because of some health concerns, the family is asking anyone who attends if you would please wear a mask to that service. Second. Second, we have prayer ministers up here to the side of the stage, and they would love to be praying with you about any concerns or anything that you have in your life.
And also, today is the first Sunday of the month, and so there is a benevolence offering today. Anything that you put in the black buckets at the back, that will be used in order to help take care of those in our congregation. who are hurting or are in need. Let me pray for us as we are dismissed today.
Father, you are so good. You are our living hope, Jesus. We're so thankful for what you have done.
We're grateful for your righteousness that's been credited to our account, for you taking upon our sin and our punishment. And we go and we live in that goodness, filled with joy because of what you've done. In Jesus'name, amen.