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Communion Preparatory Sermon · Stornoway Free Church of Scotland - Sermons

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May we rejoice like the kings of the earth to hear God's word.
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So let's turn and study God's word together.
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Just now in the book of Psalms, Psalm 117.
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In the church Bible, this is page 614.
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Praise the Lord, all nations.
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Extol him, all peoples.
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For great is his steadfast love towards us.
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The faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.
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Praise the Lord.
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Let's bow our heads in prayer just now for a moment.
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Heavenly Father, may we tonight be filled with praise as we are called to in these verses.
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We long, Lord, for that overflow of praise that will fill the earth,
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where we will not need to say to our neighbors,
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believe in the Lord or to trust him or call people to worship,
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because all of the earth will be filled with the glory of the Lord.
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And so just now we pray, Father, as missionaries,
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as people who are sent and commissioned to go into the darkness of this world,
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but to bring forth the light of the countenance of Christ Jesus and to show him to all peoples.
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And for that praise to resonate from us as those who are redeemed and have the hope of the gospel beating in their hearts.
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So, Father, guide our thoughts and our minds, our attention this evening.
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Fill us with certainty in the things of the gospel.
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And we ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.
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I wonder this evening, what are we giving thanks for?
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There are, of course, many things that we can give thanks for.
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Many reasons to be filled with thankfulness.
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Sometimes they're small things.
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Sometimes we can be giving thanks for almost mundane things in our lives and our experience.
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If you follow Scotland as a football fan, I'm sure there was some thanksgiving going up for Scotland's performance recently.
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And then you come to the draw of the groups and you think, are we still so thankful?
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Perhaps.
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Recently, we've just had Thanksgiving.
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We had our own Thanksgiving as a congregation last week.
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And we give thanks this time of year for the harvest and for the fullness of God's blessing.
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There are many things, just even day by day in our lives and experience, that we can give thanks for.
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And on some levels, they are just mundane things.
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We can give thanks for the air we breathe, for the food that we have, the water we have to drink,
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and for the good things that God gives us.
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We can thank God for our families.
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The list is endless, really.
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Not just trivial things, but great things in our lives that we can give thanks for.
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And that call to thanksgiving is what is being echoed in this psalm.
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It is a psalm that the words are there for all nations of the world.
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Praise the Lord all nations.
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Extol him all peoples.
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It is, in fact, a wonderful thing that the shortest psalm in the Bible, the shortest chapter in the Bible,
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it is a chapter that is seen simply to preach and proclaim the gospel.
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To make the good news of Christ known to the nations so that they can respond to this call and they can praise the Lord.
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And the evidence of that, I hope, is what we see, as I've already said in prayer this evening,
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the evidence of this is what we see tonight.
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That we, I suspect, largely a Gentile congregation,
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have come together tonight to worship the Lord.
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And to make him known.
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And to give thanks to him for his steadfast love towards us
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and for his faithfulness, which endures forever.
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And so as we come tonight to respond to this invitation,
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and as we, I hope, would also be looking to examine our hearts as we come to the Lord's table tomorrow.
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That's the main reason for our gathering like this.
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It's to enter into that exercise of spiritual preparation that we ought to have as we come to the Lord's table.
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Let us tonight consider this invitation.
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It is an invitation to do something.
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It is an invitation tonight to come to praise and extol.
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To praise means simply to acclaim.
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To make much of someone.
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To extol means to exalt or to eulogize them.
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To proclaim their goodness.
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To proclaim good things about them.
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To make these things known.
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And the act of praising or extolling the Lord is an act that uses the whole person.
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And so tonight, if you're wanting to engage in the act of worship,
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if you want to engage in the act of praise,
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then not only do you need to use your lips,
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but you need to use some of the other organs and abilities that God has given you.
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First of all, you need to use your mind.
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The person who comes to praise the Lord engages their mind in thoughts concerning the Lord.
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And so tonight, as we come to praise God,
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as we come to worship Him,
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and as we do that through, in particular tomorrow,
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the remembering of the death of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
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then we do so engaging our minds in the act of worship.
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We think about the words that are coming out of our mouth, certainly.
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But we think more about the person and the work of that person.
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We think about Jesus.
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And that's one of the things that Paul,
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when he writes to the Corinthian church,
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reminds them of.
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That they should come correctly to the Lord's table.
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And part of that is discerning the Lord's body and blood.
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And that is to think about it.
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To perceive truth about the body of Jesus
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and His blood which have been broken and shed at the cross.
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And so the way that we come to the Lord's table
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is thinking about what Christ has done.
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But it's not enough for us simply to know these truths.
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It's not enough for us simply to have in our minds
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some element of that truth.
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It also has to move other parts of us.
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So if we want to come truly worshiping,
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if we want to fulfill the invitation of this psalm,
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the way in which we have to come is using our hearts.
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If I want to acclaim somebody,
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if I want to tell you of the wonders of a particular person,
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then I need to use my heart behind that.
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The example that you might use would be to talk about human people,
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people that we would know and we want to pass on something of their wonderfulness.
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There are some politicians that we might want to do that with.
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We might really love some politicians.
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Perhaps it's Tony Blair.
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And you think about how good he was as a prime minister
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and how good his government was.
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Or sometimes you might even recognize how effective he was,
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but still not entirely agree with everything he did.
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And actually even my mentioning his name tonight might,
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for some people here,
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have resulted in a pretty visceral reaction down in your stomach.
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And you think,
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well, hang on a minute.
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That guy was,
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you know,
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Iraq war.
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Are we really sure that's someone we'd want to acclaim?
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Go a little bit further back and you can see the same about Margaret Thatcher.
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You can go further back into recent European history
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and you find some truly awful figures.
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You might know an awful lot about them,
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but you would never dream of praising them
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because they are so despicable.
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Your heart,
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to issue praise,
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your heart needs to be engaged.
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You need to delight in them.
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You need to find things that are worthy of praise
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in them that move your own heart,
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that move you to express affection.
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And so with Jesus,
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that's what we're invited to do in this psalm.
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It is to find,
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using our minds,
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find things that actually speak to our hearts
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about what Jesus has done.
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And so to truly praise him,
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to truly extol him,
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what we need to do is reflect on the person and work of Jesus
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and find things there
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that move our hearts,
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that result in devotion for us.
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And hopefully that is the case.
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We can think about the work of God in the gospel.
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We can think of the promises of God.
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We can think of what Christ has done at the cross
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to deal with our sin.
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Perhaps there are things at the cross even
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that particularly speak to us.
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The gentleness of Jesus,
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even as he's in agonizing pain
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and he addresses his followers
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and his mother.
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And he says to John,
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Behold your mother.
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And to his mother,
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Behold your son.
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That love and that affection
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that filled the heart of Jesus
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just pours out of him,
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doesn't it,
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at the cross?
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As he speaks to the thief
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on his side
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and says to him,
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Today you will be with me in paradise.
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Words that are particularly precious to me.
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Perhaps to some of you as well.
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Our hearts are moved
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by the things of Jesus
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and the things that he has done for us.
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And perhaps even as we reflect on that
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in a deeper and more theological way
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and we begin to think about
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the propitiation of sin,
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of the fact that sin is covered.
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We'll be singing tomorrow morning
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about the hyssop.
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Well, some of us will be singing in Gaelic,
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I think it'll be.
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But we'll be singing about hyssop
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being used to sprinkle blood.
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A covering for sin
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that hides us,
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shelters us
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from the wrath of God.
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How we're spared from hell and damnation
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because Christ has loved us
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and given himself for us.
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Our hearts
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are moved
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by what we hear
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and what leads us to worship.
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But also to
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an invisible muscle,
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almost I suppose you could say,
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our faith
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needs to be engaged.
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We have to believe
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if we're going to praise God,
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and this is a simple fact,
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very difficult for people
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in our modern age to understand,
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but if you're going to worship God,
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you have to worship
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an invisible God.
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And no one can worship him
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without believing that he is.
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And so if we want to come
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and praise God,
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then one of the things
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that needs to be engaged in us
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is that muscle of faith
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that needs to be active,
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that element of trust
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in the person of Jesus,
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who though we do not see him,
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yet we believe in him.
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None of us have seen Christ Jesus
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personally, I think.
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but yet we can be moved
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to praise him
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and to speak of his goodness
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and his love towards us
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because we believe in him.
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We have been given the grace
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to exercise faith.
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And faith is like a muscle.
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It has to be exercised.
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What else?
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It begins to suffer
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from cramp and decay.
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And so this call
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in this psalm,
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praise the Lord,
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all nations,
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extol him,
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all peoples,
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it is a call
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to exercise faith.
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It's a call
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to actually engage
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not only our minds
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and our hearts
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and our affection
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towards Christ,
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but to actually believe in him
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with an element of trust
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and personal dependence
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that says,
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he is my Savior.
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That not only is Christ
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a Savior,
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not even perhaps
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is Christ the Savior,
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but tonight to worship
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and say,
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he is my Savior.
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And it is necessary for us,
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therefore then,
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to use our bodies.
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To use our bodies
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in obedience
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to the call of Jesus.
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And that does involve
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our lips
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and our tongues
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and our lungs
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and our vocal cords.
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It involves somehow
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expressing from our hearts
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a belief
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that needs to work
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its way out of us,
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that needs to be heard,
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that needs to be given voice,
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that we believe
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in the Lord Jesus Christ.
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And we will testify
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to this with our lips
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and therefore,
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having believed in our hearts
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and testified with our lips,
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we will be saved.
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If that's you,
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then perhaps there's another
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piece of your body
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that needs to be exercised tomorrow.
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Perhaps that's your feet
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and your legs.
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Perhaps they need to be exercised
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in physically coming
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to the Lord's table,
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professing the Lord's death
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with your body,
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obeying the command of Jesus
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to use these very visceral,
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literal symbols,
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bread and wine,
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to testify to the praise
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of what he has done,
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to acknowledge
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the grace of God
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revealed to sinners.
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sinners.
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In this psalm,
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there is in fact
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an invitation
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to come to the Lord's table,
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an invitation
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to make the highest
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proclamation
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of your faith,
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testifying to what
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Jesus has done
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for sinners
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and to come
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in obedience to him.
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So it is an invitation
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to do something.
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It is also an invitation
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to do something
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concerning someone.
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The person that we are to praise
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is this one,
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the Lord.
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Praise the Lord,
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all nations.
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Extol him,
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all peoples.
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And you'll see,
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you'll note in your Bibles
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that the name,
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the Lord,
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there is that use
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of the capital letters,
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L-O-R-D.
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In the Hebrew Bible,
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the words that would be there,
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the letters that would be there
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are the consonants
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of the name of God,
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which even the Jews
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wouldn't take on their lips.
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And so it's almost
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a bit tricky for us
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to think,
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how do we pronounce this?
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Yahweh, probably.
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It's tied into the name of God
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that was given to Moses
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at the burning bush
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when Moses came
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and he had to put off
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his sandals
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because the ground
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on which he was standing
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was holy ground.
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And Moses' concern there
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is not to say,
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well, you're sending me,
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Lord,
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on this impossible mission
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to tell Pharaoh,
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let my people go.
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The bigger concern
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in Moses' heart
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at that moment
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was to say,
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well, actually,
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what about your own people?
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What if they ask me
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who sent you?
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What will I say?
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And you remember
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the answer that was given
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to Moses.
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Tell them,
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I am has sent them.
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This one who is
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the faithful God
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of their patriarchs,
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of Abraham
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and Isaac
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and Jacob.
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The God of your forefathers,
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the God of promises
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is the one who has sent you.
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We'll come to that
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in just a moment
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because that's spelled out
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for us a bit more clearly
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as we go on.
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But just for us tonight
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to think about this,
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the invitation for us
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is to praise the Lord.
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And I find it very interesting.
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I think as I go through
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the book of Psalms,
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I think actually
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as I read the Psalms
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more and more,
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one of the things
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I recognize is
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that whatever you see
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the name of Lord
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in the book of Psalms,
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you can actually put in
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the name of Jesus
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very easily
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and it's not wrong.
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It's not wrong
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from a Trinitarian
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theological perspective anyway.
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What is true of one member
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of the Trinity
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is true of all members
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of the Trinity.
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And so if one member
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of the Trinity
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is worthy of our praise,
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each member of the Trinity
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is worthy of our praise.
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So we can comfortably
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and theologically
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be right in putting
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the name of Jesus in there.
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But even to see it
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at a higher level than that,
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it's interesting to me
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that even that expression
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that we use,
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whether it's the name Jehovah
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or the name Yahweh,
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it's a name that sounds
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in some ways
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difficult for us
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because it's not the name
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that we know our God by.
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Tonight,
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the name by which
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we know our God
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is Jesus.
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And it's at His name
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that every knee should bow
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and every tongue
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shall in fact confess
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that Jesus is Lord.
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And so tonight,
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the invitation to us
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to come to the Lord's table
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is to come and remember
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the work and the person
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of Jesus
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and to praise
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and extol Jesus.
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And so as you come
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to the Lord's table,
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do you come thinking
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and moved in your heart
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and exercising your faith,
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not in some abstract idea
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of God who is distant
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from us perhaps,
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but God who has come
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close to us,
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the God who has come
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and lived among us,
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the God who has borne
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our sorrows
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in His own person,
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the God who has come
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and lived among us
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and in fact
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emptied Himself
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by taking on
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the form of a servant
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and coming in the person
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of Christ?
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Do we love Him, therefore?
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This person
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who is not distant from us.
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And are we moved,
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therefore, as well
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to reflect on what we do
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in relation to Him?
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Do we come to Him
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as our great high priest
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with all of the sorrows
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of our own hearts?
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And do we praise Him
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through our confession
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of sin?
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Because that's part of what
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this worship and extolling Him
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involves.
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It involves an acknowledgement
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of the relationship
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that we have with Him.
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And it is a relationship
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where sin
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is inescapable.
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You cannot have
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a relationship
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with Christ
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without wrestling
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with
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the reality
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of our sin
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and His
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forgiveness of it.
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And so,
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as we come to praise Him,
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as we come to worship Him,
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as we come to
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pour out our hearts
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before Him
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and acknowledge
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His Lordship
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over us,
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do we come
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acknowledging our sin
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and confessing
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what's necessary
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for us,
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this Jesus?
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It's an invitation
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as well,
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not only to a certain
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thing and concerning
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a certain person,
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but it's also an invitation
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to all.
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The nations
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are mentioned.
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Praise the Lord,
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all nations.
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The word in Hebrew
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is the idea
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of Gentile nations,
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of foreign nations.
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That's why
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the New Testament
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translation of it
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that we've read
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in Romans,
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Paul says,
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praise Him,
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all you Gentiles.
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It's an invitation
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that goes out
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to all of the
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geopolitical groups
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of the world.
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It goes out
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to the nations
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that surrounded Israel,
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whether it was
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Edom or Moab
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or Egypt
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or Babylon
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or whoever else.
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All of these powers
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are invited
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to come and praise.
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It's an invitation
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that goes out today
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to Hebrideans,
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and to
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Glaswegians,
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to Tuchters
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and Townies,
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to Moas,
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to every single
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one of us.
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It's an invitation
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that comes
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to all peoples,
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all ethnic groups.
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it's an invitation
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for everyone.
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And this again
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is one of these things
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that I think
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in terms of communion
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people struggle with.
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Because sometimes
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what you think
21:25
is one of the objections
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that I know
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people struggle with
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who've sat away
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from the Lord's table
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for a long,
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long time
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is sometimes
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they think,
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well,
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it's not for me
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because it wasn't
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for my dad
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or it wasn't
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for my mother.
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And I know
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my mom and my dad
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and they were
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very righteous people
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and they never felt
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able to go
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to the Lord's table
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and if I measure
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myself against them
21:52
I am no better
21:53
so how can I
21:54
possibly go
21:55
to the Lord's table?
21:57
But I want you
21:57
tonight to remember
21:58
the invitation
21:59
to come
21:59
and the invitation
22:02
to praise
22:02
and extol the Lord
22:03
and the highest
22:04
expression of that
22:05
I think is an
22:05
obedience to Him.
22:08
It is for all peoples.
22:11
And so I want you
22:11
tonight,
22:12
if that's you,
22:13
I want you to
22:14
lay that concern
22:15
aside.
22:18
Because God
22:18
is not asking you
22:20
to praise Him
22:21
on behalf
22:22
of your mom and dad
22:23
or on behalf
22:24
of generations past.
22:27
He is asking
22:28
you to praise Him.
22:31
It is an invitation
22:32
for you
22:33
to obey Him
22:34
and come.
22:35
It is an invitation
22:35
for the individual.
22:38
And there is no
22:39
limits.
22:43
It is all nations,
22:46
all peoples.
22:48
So the invitation
22:49
of this psalm
22:50
comes to all of us
22:52
and we must
22:54
bow the knee
22:55
before Christ
22:55
and acknowledge
22:56
Him as Savior.
22:57
We must trust in Him
22:59
for our salvation
22:59
and we must
23:02
praise Him.
23:04
We must extol Him.
23:05
So what are we
23:06
praising Him
23:06
and extoling Him for?
23:08
I mean,
23:08
we've mentioned this
23:08
a little bit
23:09
in the passing already,
23:10
but verse 2 helps us.
23:11
For,
23:12
the great explanatory
23:13
word of the Bible,
23:14
For great is His
23:17
steadfast love
23:18
towards us.
23:22
Great is His
23:23
steadfast love.
23:25
Steadfast love
23:26
in Hebrew
23:26
is one word.
23:28
It's simply
23:28
the word chesed.
23:30
It's God's
23:32
love
23:34
for His
23:35
rebellious creatures.
23:38
Remember I said
23:39
before that sin,
23:40
our sin,
23:41
has to be
23:42
acknowledged
23:42
within how
23:43
we praise God.
23:44
It has to be seen.
23:46
It has to be
23:46
a component
23:47
of how we think
23:47
about why
23:48
we're praising God
23:49
at all.
23:49
Part of that is
23:50
because that is
23:51
what His chesed does.
23:54
The steadfast love
23:55
of the Lord
23:56
comes into
23:57
our experience
23:57
and it
23:59
obliterates
24:01
the traces
24:01
of sin
24:02
in our lives.
24:05
It just
24:05
covers them
24:06
entirely
24:06
so that they
24:07
cannot be seen.
24:09
If you want
24:09
to think
24:09
about the
24:10
greatest act
24:10
of God's
24:11
steadfast love,
24:12
it is found
24:13
at the cross
24:13
where God
24:15
in all of the
24:16
fullness of time
24:16
before that
24:17
had been busy
24:18
telling the Jews
24:19
this is how
24:20
we deal with sin.
24:22
We deal with it
24:23
through sacrifice.
24:25
Someone's blood
24:26
has to be
24:27
shed.
24:29
And there's
24:29
a wonderful moment
24:30
where God
24:31
has been demonstrating
24:32
this all the way
24:32
back to Abraham
24:33
where He sends
24:34
Abraham and He
24:34
says to Abraham
24:35
take your son,
24:35
your only son
24:36
whom you love
24:37
and take him
24:38
to the mountain
24:38
I will show you
24:39
and there
24:39
sacrifice him
24:40
to me.
24:41
And Abraham
24:41
takes his son,
24:42
his only son
24:43
whom he loves,
24:43
Isaac,
24:44
and leads him
24:45
up the mountain
24:45
and Isaac's
24:46
even asking,
24:46
where is the
24:47
lamb?
24:50
And as Abraham
24:51
takes his son
24:51
up to the altar,
24:52
he binds him
24:53
to the altar.
24:56
And he does
24:56
so in faith.
24:57
He does so
24:58
believing,
24:58
confident that
24:59
the promise
24:59
of God
25:00
is through
25:00
this son
25:01
so he believes
25:02
at that point
25:02
in a resurrection.
25:03
although Isaac
25:04
may be slain
25:05
and burned
25:05
as a sacrifice,
25:06
God will
25:07
raise him up.
25:08
So he does
25:09
it with full
25:09
confidence in God.
25:11
But he takes
25:13
him and he's
25:13
ready to plunge
25:14
the knife
25:14
into his son,
25:15
his only son
25:16
whom he loved.
25:18
And God
25:18
calls out to him,
25:19
the angel of the
25:20
Lord calls out
25:21
and says,
25:22
Abraham,
25:22
stop.
25:25
Do not do
25:26
this.
25:27
Now I know
25:27
that you love
25:28
me.
25:30
And God
25:31
who speaks
25:32
these words
25:32
knows that
25:35
at some point,
25:36
maybe 2,000 years
25:37
after that
25:37
or 1,000 years
25:38
after that,
25:40
perhaps even
25:40
on the same
25:41
hill
25:41
and the same
25:42
place,
25:45
another son
25:46
will be offered
25:48
as a sacrifice
25:48
for the sins
25:49
of the world.
25:51
And as we'll
25:52
think tomorrow,
25:53
there is no
25:54
voice that
25:55
calls out,
25:57
stop.
26:00
Great
26:00
is the
26:01
steadfast love
26:02
of the
26:03
Lord.
26:04
Not in some
26:05
abstract sense
26:06
where we can
26:07
look at someone
26:07
and say,
26:08
oh,
26:08
they're a
26:09
lovely person.
26:10
Haven't they
26:10
got such
26:10
wonderful
26:11
characteristics?
26:12
Aren't they
26:12
great?
26:14
But in
26:15
God's case
26:15
where we
26:16
talk about
26:16
his steadfast
26:17
love,
26:18
and in the
26:19
Bible it is
26:19
almost consistently
26:20
expressed this
26:21
way,
26:22
it is his
26:22
steadfast love
26:23
moving in a
26:25
direction.
26:25
It is towards
26:26
us.
26:27
It is
26:29
steadfast love
26:29
that is not
26:30
abstract and
26:31
over there.
26:32
It is
26:32
steadfast love
26:33
that comes
26:33
into the
26:34
experience and
26:35
the lives of
26:36
God's people
26:36
and does
26:37
something there
26:38
that brings
26:40
redemption into
26:41
their experience,
26:42
that sets them
26:43
free from the
26:44
coils and
26:45
entanglement of
26:46
sin, that sets
26:47
them free from
26:47
death itself,
26:48
and will one
26:49
day raise them
26:50
up with Christ
26:51
Jesus in the
26:52
fullness of the
26:52
resurrection.
26:53
resurrection.
26:55
This is the
26:56
steadfast love
26:56
of the Lord.
27:01
My question
27:02
for you
27:02
tonight is
27:03
quite simply
27:03
this, do
27:04
you know
27:04
this God?
27:07
Do we know
27:08
the steadfast
27:08
love of the
27:09
Lord?
27:09
Is that what
27:10
we're wanting
27:10
to worship?
27:11
Is that who
27:11
we want to
27:12
praise?
27:12
Is that what
27:13
of God we
27:14
want to
27:14
extol?
27:16
It ought to
27:17
be as we're
27:17
coming to the
27:18
Lord's table
27:18
because the
27:19
Lord's table
27:19
is the place
27:20
where we
27:20
remember the
27:21
pinnacle of
27:21
that love
27:22
being expressed.
27:23
in the broken
27:25
body and the
27:26
shed blood of
27:26
Christ Jesus.
27:30
It is
27:31
steadfast love
27:32
for us
27:33
sinners.
27:35
And it
27:36
leads us to
27:36
worship.
27:39
The covenant
27:40
love of the
27:40
Lord, that
27:41
steadfast love
27:42
of the Lord,
27:42
it's bound
27:42
up in his
27:43
covenant as
27:43
well.
27:45
And so
27:45
within the
27:46
heart of
27:47
covenant
27:47
theology is
27:49
the simple
27:49
fact of
27:50
God's
27:50
substitutionary
27:51
love.
27:53
God
27:53
establishes a
27:54
bond with
27:56
his people
27:57
to save
27:59
and redeem
27:59
them.
28:01
But the
28:02
bond that
28:02
he establishes
28:03
is one
28:03
made and
28:04
sealed through
28:04
the blood
28:05
of Jesus.
28:08
And
28:09
allied to
28:10
that is
28:10
this other
28:11
word, the
28:11
faithfulness of
28:12
God.
28:13
God
28:15
having
28:15
entered into
28:16
a covenant
28:17
to do
28:17
this, follows
28:19
through on
28:19
that promise.
28:21
And that
28:21
covenant is
28:22
bounded at
28:23
multiple
28:23
levels.
28:26
We might
28:27
think that it
28:27
was God's
28:28
promise to
28:28
Abraham, who
28:29
was the
28:30
father of
28:30
the faithful,
28:31
that God
28:31
promised Abraham
28:32
his name.
28:32
We might go
28:33
further back,
28:33
in fact, and
28:33
we might even
28:34
go back to
28:34
Adam, and
28:35
we could say
28:35
in Adam,
28:36
well, God
28:36
made a
28:36
promise to
28:37
Adam.
28:38
In fact, it
28:38
was a promise
28:39
passively made
28:39
to Adam.
28:40
It was a
28:40
statement, a
28:41
judgment made
28:42
to Satan, to
28:42
the evil
28:43
one, where
28:43
he said to
28:44
the serpent
28:45
in the garden,
28:45
one day the
28:47
seed of the
28:47
woman will
28:48
bruise the
28:48
head of the
28:49
serpent.
28:50
It's part
28:50
of the
28:51
curse.
28:53
But within
28:53
it, there is
28:54
that wonderful
28:54
truth, that
28:55
promise of
28:56
God, that a
28:57
faithful,
28:58
established
28:59
covenant has
28:59
been entered
29:00
into.
29:00
God is going
29:01
to redeem
29:02
these people.
29:03
He's going
29:04
to bring
29:04
redemption.
29:08
And
29:08
in the
29:10
fullness of
29:10
time that
29:11
comes in
29:11
the person
29:12
of Jesus.
29:14
But there
29:15
is another
29:15
layer to
29:16
this as
29:16
well, which
29:17
is the
29:17
covenant that
29:18
God made
29:18
with his
29:19
son, that
29:20
the father
29:20
and the
29:21
son entered
29:21
into in
29:23
eternity before
29:23
the foundation
29:24
of the
29:24
world.
29:26
Where creation
29:28
is established,
29:29
God says we
29:30
will make man
29:31
in our image.
29:32
But even
29:33
before that
29:33
process begins,
29:35
it's not as
29:36
if there's a
29:36
plan B
29:37
gets set up.
29:39
Where God
29:39
says, well,
29:39
by the way,
29:40
if things go
29:40
pear-shaped and
29:42
Adam sins,
29:44
you're going to
29:44
have to go and
29:45
redeem them.
29:47
The actual
29:48
plan from the
29:49
beginning was
29:50
that Christ
29:51
would come,
29:51
that God
29:52
the son would
29:52
enter into the
29:53
experience of
29:54
humanity.
29:56
It's almost as
29:56
if sin was
29:57
inevitable, not
29:58
foreordained under
29:59
God's control,
30:00
but just
30:01
inevitable in the
30:02
nature of his
30:02
creatures.
30:04
That sin was
30:05
inevitable.
30:06
God had
30:10
agreed within
30:11
the Trinity,
30:13
between the
30:13
Father and
30:13
the Son,
30:14
had agreed to
30:15
come.
30:16
And the
30:17
faithfulness of
30:18
God is seen
30:18
that in the
30:19
fullness of
30:19
time, the
30:20
Christ did
30:22
come.
30:23
This is
30:24
perhaps the
30:24
greatest wonder
30:25
of the cosmos,
30:27
that the God
30:27
and creator of
30:28
all things,
30:29
the one by
30:30
whose word and
30:31
power all
30:31
things are made
30:32
and sustained,
30:33
that he came
30:34
into the world,
30:34
that he took
30:35
on himself the
30:35
form of a
30:36
servant, and
30:37
that he subjected
30:38
himself to
30:39
the misery of
30:42
this world.
30:43
And that in his
30:44
faithfulness he
30:45
went to the
30:46
cross and he
30:46
died for his
30:48
people.
30:51
And tonight,
30:53
the question
30:54
before us is
30:55
simply this,
30:56
what are we
30:56
praising?
30:58
I mean, what
30:59
are we singing
30:59
of when we
31:00
sing this psalm?
31:01
What's on our
31:02
minds?
31:02
What's in our
31:03
hearts?
31:03
What's moving
31:04
us?
31:06
And surely it
31:07
is this, that
31:07
we know a
31:08
Savior, a
31:09
Redeemer in
31:09
Christ Jesus,
31:10
who loved us
31:11
and gave
31:12
himself for
31:12
us, and
31:14
who did
31:15
so through
31:18
the sorrow
31:20
of Gethsemane,
31:22
who in the
31:23
depths of
31:24
sorrow in
31:24
Gethsemane
31:25
said,
31:26
nevertheless
31:26
Father,
31:27
even though
31:27
if I could
31:28
ask that this
31:29
cup would
31:29
pass from
31:30
me,
31:30
nevertheless
31:30
Father, not
31:31
my will but
31:32
yours be
31:34
done,
31:36
who surrendered
31:38
himself willingly
31:39
to the will
31:40
of his
31:40
Father,
31:42
who carried
31:42
out the
31:43
fullness of
31:43
the covenant
31:44
commitments that
31:45
God had
31:45
entered into,
31:47
who carried
31:49
the cross.
31:54
This is our
31:55
Savior tonight.
31:56
Lord, this is
32:06
who we are
32:07
invited to
32:08
make much
32:08
of and to
32:09
extol with
32:10
our lips.
32:13
And so
32:14
will we not
32:14
come and
32:16
praise the
32:18
Lord?
32:19
Let's pray.
32:20
Heavenly Father we thank you for
32:28
tonight your fidelity
32:30
your faithfulness
32:32
the fact that you are
32:35
in Christ Jesus the hope of the Gentiles
32:38
and so Lord we need
32:41
desperately to have our hearts
32:43
engaged
32:44
and our minds committed
32:47
and our faith
32:49
exercised towards this great
32:51
truth that you
32:53
have done it all
32:55
and so
32:58
Father prepare us to come
32:59
in obedience
33:01
to your invitation
33:03
and we ask this for
33:05
Christ's own sake
33:06
Amen
33:08
We're going to sing in conclusion
33:11
in that psalm, Psalm 117
33:14
in Sing
33:18
Psalms page 155
33:19
The tune is Regent Square
33:27
We've sung it recently
33:29
actually in the congregation
33:30
Praise the Lord
33:33
O all you nations
33:34
all you peoples
33:36
sing his praise
33:37
for his love is great towards us
33:40
his commitment lasts always
33:42
he is faithful
33:43
now and ever
33:44
Hallelujah
33:45
Praise the Lord
33:48
I think we'll sing it through twice
33:49
and we'll stand to sing
33:50
and remain standing for the benediction
33:52
Praise the Lord
33:58
O all your nations
34:01
all you need
34:03
must sing his face
34:07
for his love is great towards us
34:12
praise the Lord
34:14
praise the Lord
34:18
He is faithful
34:20
now and ever
34:23
praise the Lord
34:23
praise the Lord
34:24
Alleluia, praise the Lord.
34:31
Praise the Lord, O all you nations, all you peoples sing his praise.
34:42
For his love is straight towards us, his moment and last always.
34:53
His faithful, alleluia, praise the Lord.
35:08
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. Amen.
35:23
Amen.