Faith and Taxes.
Notes
Transcript
Opening:
Good morning again Connection Church! It is so wonderful to be able to gather together again on the Lord’s Day. I am thankful for this blessed opportunity to study the Word of the Lord together. When we read God’s Word we are hearing what God has spoken to us. It is the truth that God has revealed.
Introduction of the Text:
With this in mind, I would ask you to open with me to Matthew 17:24-27. We have been working verse by verse through the book of Matthew. This has been a wonder experience in my opinion. It has given us the opportunity to see the book in context. It has allowed us to cover things clearly. It has allowed us to cover topics we would not normally cover. We have seen the Authority of Jesus covered again and again and again. We have seen the miracles of Christ. We have seen the rebukes of Christ. We have seen the true identity of Christ. This week we are going to cover our next section of verses.
Explanation of the Content:
I would like to give a few words of opening explanation. These verses are not ones that many preachers would often come to. It is not a flashy set of verses. Really this passage answers the question, “Does the Bible teach us about taxation?” The answer is yes. The Bible teaches us about taxation. At this point one can almost feel the groans that all of you are holding in. “We’re going to learn about taxation? Great...” However, it is not surprising that the Bible covers this. The Westminster confession of faith says “VI. The whole counsel of God, concerning all things necessary for his own glory, man’s salvation, faith, and life, is either expressly set down in scripture, or by good and necessary consequence may be deduced from scripture:” The Bible covers the entire range of human experience. God is the one who established the government. He has given them authority and has limited that authority. He has also established how His people are to behave regarding the government.
Therefore, I would encourage you not to shut your brains off immediately. Benjamin Franklin famously said “in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” I think within the church a third thing can be added. “How to handle the church and government.” There is mass confusion on this issue. This has only been aggravated during COVID. I think a massive lack of understanding on how the church and government are to relate has been revealed. The Bible is not silent on this issue however. Christians are simply ignorant on this issue. We have not studied the teachings of Scripture on how to interact with the government and taxes. On one side some will say that passages like this are proof that we have no need to obey or submit to the government at all. I will say that this is a fairly small group of anarchists. On the other side, many will merely say the words “Romans 13” as a defense of blindly doing whatever the government says. Both are wrong. Scripture speaks to this and we are obligated to heed the Word of God.
Reading of the Text:
Therefore, stand with me for the reading of God’s Word. Matthew 17:24-27
24 When they came to Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma tax went up to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay the tax?” 25 He said, “Yes.” And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or tax? From their sons or from others?” 26 And when he said, “From others,” Jesus said to him, “Then the sons are free. 27 However, not to give offense to them, go to the sea and cast a hook and take the first fish that comes up, and when you open its mouth you will find a shekel. Take that and give it to them for me and for yourself.”
The Word of God. Let’s Pray.
Prayer:
Dear heavenly Father, thank you for who you are. Thank you for all you have done for us. Thank you for your word. It is a wonderful blessing that we can go to it and see how we are to handle life. Thank you for the clarity of your Word. Thank you for speaking to various situations and circumstances. Thank you for the governments and leaders you have established. Help us to submit to them as you wish us to. Lord, if we must rebel against them, protect us from sin. May we be subject to you first and them second.
Teach us today through your Word, and may we please hold fast to it. If there is anyone here who is not saved, may you draw them to yourself. Lord, guard over my mouth. Help me not to speak anything against you or your word. Please keep my mouth from lies or untruths. Please give me boldness. Do not let me shy away in fear from speaking truth. Do not the opinions of others keep me silent. Help me to boldly speak the truth. I tremble in this pulpit. Help me to fear you more than man. If I am hated, let it be for the truth of your word. Let me in love speak your Word, oh God most high. Let me honor you today.
We ask this in Jesus name, Amen.
Transition:
As we open this text I am reminded of what was celebrated last week. Last Sunday was the fourth of July. That is the day that we here in America celebrate our independence from England.
Opening Illustration:
As of late I have heard many miscommunicate what happened at the revolution and the founding or express confusion over why it even happened. Historically, the war came about because of taxation without representation. But what does this mean? We remember the historical tales of the Boston Tea Party, where because of the tax on tea, the colonists threw tea into Boston Harbor as a protest. But more and more you hear the point labored that this was an evil demonstration. I personally have heard some claim that the founders were disobeying the Scriptures in defying the British government. This is a bold claim concerning men who historically wrestled through Scripture to find if they were right or wrong.
The founders were not perfect men, nor were they all Christians. However, they were all men who were part of and greatly valued a Biblical worldview and system of government. They went to Scripture and the answer they came away with was that they were not obligated to obey this law. They believed that because Parliament had no right to charge the tax, they were not obligated to pay it. I heard one man put it very well when he compared it to South Carolina demanding a tax from one of us. We are South Dakotan’s. We have no representation in South Carolina. The issue is not weather the amount of the tax is reasonable but weather or not we owe it. In that case, we would not owe it. The founders believed that they did not owe this tax. The King had established a ruling system within the colonies. Parliament had no right to charge the colonies because the colonies had no representation in Parliament. So they appealed to the King for independence.
I am not making the claim yet weather they were right or wrong. However, the founders of our nation not lived in a time where Scripture was highly appreciated and honored by almost everyone. Because of this, the Christians and non Christians among them sought guidance and insight from Scripture on how to handle tax laws. To over-simplify the situation, our nation was founded on weather or not the Scriptures speak to taxation.
Transition:
So let us dive into what this text says and the implications of this. The first thing we see in this text is that a tax is demanded of Jesus.
A Tax is Demanded of Jesus.
A Tax is Demanded of Jesus.
Explanation:
Jesus has healed the demon possessed boy, explained things to the disciples including how He would die and be raised on the third day. Now they enter into the area where they are so often. They come to Capernaum. This is where Peter lived, and it likely that Jesus stayed with Peter. The first interaction we see is that there are tax collectors who question Peter. They were men who collected what was known as “the two drachma tax.” Now, what was this tax? Here we remember that Matthew was writing to a Jewish audience. When I was studying this passage, it took a lot of research for me to understand what this tax was. Matthew gives no detail about this tax. He simply says “the men who collected the two drachma tax questioned Peter.” He does this because the Jews he was writing to would have understood instantly what he meant.
This would be like if I wrote you a letter and simply said “I knew it was December because there was a constant bell ringing at the grocery store entrance.” To us that would make complete sense as being a reference to the Salvation Army bell ringers who collect money. However, if someone two thousand years removed from this practice read that, they would be completely lost and confused. So what on earth is the “two drachma tax?”
It hearkens back to several Old Testament passages. It is instituted in Exodus 30:11-16 which says, “11 The LORD said to Moses, 12 “When you take the census of the people of Israel, then each shall give a ransom for his life to the LORD when you number them, that there be no plague among them when you number them. 13 Each one who is numbered in the census shall give this: half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs), half a shekel as an offering to the LORD. 14 Everyone who is numbered in the census, from twenty years old and upward, shall give the LORD’s offering. 15 The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less, than the half shekel, when you give the LORD’s offering to make atonement for your lives. 16 You shall take the atonement money from the people of Israel and shall give it for the service of the tent of meeting, that it may bring the people of Israel to remembrance before the LORD, so as to make atonement for your lives.”
This is a census tax. It was meant to build the Tabernacle elements and later the Temple. It is a tax taken with the census to raise money for this task. Only men over twenty could be counted.
We also see Joash do this in 2 Chronicles 24:1-10 which says “Joash was seven years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zibiah of Beersheba. 2 And Joash did what was right in the eyes of the LORD all the days of Jehoiada the priest. 3 Jehoiada got for him two wives, and he had sons and daughters.
4 After this Joash decided to restore the house of the LORD. 5 And he gathered the priests and the Levites and said to them, “Go out to the cities of Judah and gather from all Israel money to repair the house of your God from year to year, and see that you act quickly.” But the Levites did not act quickly. 6 So the king summoned Jehoiada the chief and said to him, “Why have you not required the Levites to bring in from Judah and Jerusalem the tax levied by Moses, the servant of the LORD, and the congregation of Israel for the tent of testimony?” 7 For the sons of Athaliah, that wicked woman, had broken into the house of God, and had also used all the dedicated things of the house of the LORD for the Baals.
8 So the king commanded, and they made a chest and set it outside the gate of the house of the LORD. 9 And proclamation was made throughout Judah and Jerusalem to bring in for the LORD the tax that Moses the servant of God laid on Israel in the wilderness. 10 And all the princes and all the people rejoiced and brought their tax and dropped it into the chest until they had finished.”
Joash was restoring the Temple, so he reinstituted the census tax. He placed the collection box at the gate of the Temple so that when people would come in, they would give the money. We also see how willing the people were to give in this righteous tax. They rejoiced to give.
The other place I found where this tax is taken is in Nehemiah 10:33 which says 32 “We also take on ourselves the obligation to give yearly a third part of a shekel for the service of the house of our God:” When Nehemiah came back from captivity in Babylon to rebuild, he reinstituted this tax, but at a lower rate because the people were so poor.
Now when we look at Matthew we can understand a little more clearly. Still we not know if it was part of God’s command to make this yearly or if that was merely Nehemiah’s law for that period of time. However, it is likely that the collection of taxes would not be given up unless God directly commanded it. These taxes were for the building, restoring and upkeep of the Temple. The collectors ask Peter if Jesus is going to pay the tax. Peter simply tells them “yes.” He had great confidence that Jesus would pay it. It is likely that Jesus had payed this tax before.
Transition:
Peter catches up with Jesus and enters the house. Likely this is Peter’s house. Jesus somehow knows exactly what was said to Peter and asks Peter a very pointed question. Do kings tax their own children?
Do Kings Tax Their Own Children?
Do Kings Tax Their Own Children?
Explanation:
Jesus asks Peter this, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or tax? From their sons or from others?” Peter gives the obvious answer. From others. It would have made no sense for a king to tax his own children. Perhaps we are a little disconnected from this in our governmental society. Kings, emperors, lords and whatnot all supported their families. It would have made no sense for them to charge people who they supported. This is an obvious question. Peter gave the right answer.
Transition:
Jesus confirms this and makes the statement “The sons are free.
The Sons Are Free.
The Sons Are Free.
Explanation:
Jesus is giving the example of earthly kings to make a heavenly point. Earthly kings do not require a tax of their sons. Therefore, the sons are free. Likewise the Son of God is free of any tax from the Father. As Jesus will go on, He, and the disciples by adoption, are exempt from this tax. Jesus need not pay this tax because He is the Son of God. God is the object of worship within the Temple. It was His and His Father’s Temple, He is not required to pay. I said the disciples were not required to because of adoption. Christians are adopted to the place of sons of God. We gain the standing of sons of God. We are co-heirs of Christ. Therefore, as sons, they as Christ would not have been required to pay.
Transition:
However, even though Jesus does not have to pay this tax, Jesus still pays it. Why? The avoiding of offense.
The Avoiding of Offence.
The Avoiding of Offence.
Explanation:
Jesus tells Peter, “27 However, not to give offense to them, go to the sea and cast a hook and take the first fish that comes up, and when you open its mouth you will find a shekel. Take that and give it to them for me and for yourself.” To avoid offence, He has Peter retrieve enough money to pay for the two of them. It is incredible how Jesus has Peter retrieve this money. He has him go down to the sea and catch a fish, seemingly with just a bare hook, and retrieve the exact amount needed from that fish’s mouth. A shekel was worth four drachma. This was the exact amount needed for the two of them. I love how Matthew Henry puts this in his commentary. He says, “Whether his omnipotence put it there, or his omniscience knew that it was there, it comes all to one; it was an evidence of his divinity, and that he is Lord of hosts.” It is not clear weather Jesus knew in His divine knowledge that the fish would grab a shekel or weather Jesus in His divine power made the coin there, but it was a great display of His divinity. Though I favor the latter view. It shows God’s ability to provide for needs however He sees fit.
But there is a question raised by this text. Why is it that only Peter and Jesus paid this tax? What of the other disciples? There are several possible explanations. Perhaps Jesus and Peter were the only ones over twenty, therefore they were the only ones who owed the tax. However, tradition holds that at least Andrew was older than Peter. This however is not confirmed by Scripture. Perhaps only Peter and Jesus had to pay because Peter lived there and Jesus stayed with Peter, therefore, they alone owed the tax for Capernaum. Or perhaps the others had already payed for the year and only Peter and Jesus needed to pay. No matter the reason, one thing is sure. Jesus is not here confirming Peter as the head of the church as some, namely the Roman church, believes. That does not fit the context of this passage.
Transition:
But perhaps the most poignant question this text raises is should Christians pay taxes?
Should Christians Pay Taxes?
Should Christians Pay Taxes?
Argumentation:
Many throughout church history and even today use this text as a defense of how Christians are exempt from paying taxes. Notably, during the reformation the Anabaptists would use this text to defend their practice of refusing to pay taxes and later on to defend their attempts to overthrow the government in general. These types are the anarchists I spoke of in my opening. They will claim that “Then the sons are free” means that since we are sons, we owe no taxes. Jesus claims that this tax is not required of them. It is not a tax they must pay. One may point to the end of this passage and claim that Jesus paid it anyway. But still the claim is made that taxes are not owed? So should Christians pay taxes?
Jesus answers this later on in Matthew. Matthew 22:15-22 records this encounter. “15 Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle him in his words. 16 And they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are true and teach the way of God truthfully, and you do not care about anyone’s opinion, for you are not swayed by appearances. 17 Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?” 18 But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why put me to the test, you hypocrites? 19 Show me the coin for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. 20 And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” 21 They said, “Caesar’s.” Then he said to them, “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” 22 When they heard it, they marveled. And they left him and went away.”
Here Jesus defends the government’s taxation in a masterful way. In essence, He says that the government has the right to require taxes. However, this is not a blanket statement of anyone in authority being able to demand whatever they want. We see in our passage today that Jesus denies the temple tax as being binding on them. Just because a ruler demands something, does not mean that it must automatically be given. We even see Jesus teach disobedience to Roman orders in Luke 22:36 to buy a sword. This was illegal for citizens in that time. We have seen and will see Jesus continue to disobey the Jewish officials who demand signs or other things of Jesus. So how do we balance this? Can we say definitively weather or not Christians should pay taxes?
Transition:
To answer this we must see the scope of how Christians should handle relations with magistrates and governments. In short, there are times when a Christian should obey the rulers and times when they should not. This applies to all laws of our rulers. We are to obey at times and to disobey at other times. In the same way, we are to pay taxes at times and not pay taxes at other times. Let’s talk first about when Christians should pay taxes.
1. When Christians Should Pay Taxes.
1. When Christians Should Pay Taxes.
Argumentation:
Christians are to submit to authorities. Turn with me to Romans 13. Earlier I have mentioned this passage a few times. It is often given as the blanket text for blind obedience to all governing authorities. However, this is not exactly what this text is saying. Look with me at Romans 13:1-7. “13 Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. 3 For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, 4 for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer. 5 Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience. 6 For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. 7 Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.”
Right away we see that this text clearly destroys the arguments of the anarchists who claim to be free of all government. Rulers and governing authorities are established and maintained by God. If we resist them we are resisting what God has established. Those who claim there should be no governing authority are in direct opposition to God and therefore in sin. However, this text also cannot mean blind obedience to all authorities. Many many passages in Scripture praise rebellion against tyrannical authorities. Acts 5 records the apostles being arrested for preaching the gospel against official laws and ruling. Verse 29 says “29 But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.” This was a righteous act. Examples like this are given again and again in Scripture. Therefore Romans thirteen is not teaching blind obedience. It is teaching the purpose of ruling officials.
Ruling governments are subject to and established by God. They are given the sword to defend the righteous and punish the wicked. They are given the right to tax their citizens in order to protect and punish. Therefore we are to pay those taxes we owe. Perhaps you have heard it said this way, “Christians should always obey the governing authorities unless what they command is sinful” That is a common phrase in the church and almost the right way to handle things. Personally I think it disorders things. It places our primary authority on the governing authorities. I think the correct way to say it is this, “We obey God in all things and the government where those things align.” If they governing authorities are in any form of contradiction to God, we obey God. Perhaps you think this is a matter of semantics. However, I present to you that it is not.
Illustration:
Let’s say that the governing authorities commanded the church to stop taking the bread in communion. They say “You are allowed to take the wine, but you must not take the bread.” If we view obedience to the governing authorities as primary, we would have conversations about how it is likely not directly sinful to take only the cup. Or how we can still take communion, we just have to do it differently than we’re used to. But if our primary allegiance and authority is what God is said, we will simply say that God commanded the cup and the bread, therefore the issue is settled. Our allegiance is to God and His Word first and we obey and submit as we are able to before God.
Or perhaps they say that we can pray all we want, but we cannot pray in Jesus name. We could talk and discuss how God knows who’s name we are praying in. We don’t have to actually say “Jesus” in our prayer. If our primary allegiance is to God and His Word, we will say “Jesus says to ask in His name. The matter is settled. We will obey Him.”
The same goes for meeting together, to singing, to every area of obedience. Our primary allegiance is to God. The governing authorities cannot overstep what God has given them. They will answer to Him for that. To use an actual historic example, the early church was faced with this situation under Roman rule. In the first century, the Roman officials offered Christians the ability to be recognized as a legitimate religion. All they had to do was offer one pinch of incense to Caesar. They had to merely venerate Caesar as a god. The early church could have avoided all of the horrific persecution they were and would face if they did this. One little pinch of incense. They could have said, “We know that Caesar is not a god. We are simply doing a small thing to appease the culture. If we do this, we could reach the culture so much more effectively! We could even teach from the pulpit that caesar is not a god. This is not a big deal.”
However, this is not what they did. They unanimously said no. They would not offer even one pinch of incense to Caesar. They believed it was an act of idolatry. They said as Peter, “We must obey God rather than man.” And they died for that refusal.
Argumentation:
So when should a Christian pay taxes? A Christian should default to obedience to God. Therefore we recognize that the government has a God given right to require taxes. We pay it and pray for our government to use it well. In almost all situations we pay it for it is a God given right to them.
Transition:
However, even though this is a God given right to them, there are times where we must not pay. Let’s look at the second situation. When Christians should not pay taxes.
2. When Christians Should Not Pay Taxes.
2. When Christians Should Not Pay Taxes.
Argumentation:
This is similar to the government wielding the sword. The Sword is not the church’s to wield. But when the government wields the sword wrongly, we are to oppose this with fiery passion. If the government takes up the sword to kill the innocent or refrains from using the sword against the wicked, we are to shout and oppose this. It is their God given right and responsibility to use this correctly.
Illustration:
This is why the church must oppose abortion. The church should have spoken up and screamed over slavery in this country, but so many stayed quiet. The government was using the sword in a wicked way. The church should have spoken up and screamed over the holocaust is Germany. Sadly so many stayed quiet. The story is told how some German churches would sing as loud as they could to drown out the screams of Jews being taken by train to the death camps. The government was using the sword in wicked ways and the church should have spoken up and screamed against this! They should have been killed for their opposition to these tragedies. Some men, like Dietrich Bonhoeffer were killed for their opposition to the holocaust and he was blessedly righteous for doing this.
In our nation, innocent are being butchered every day. Over fifty million babies have been brutally murdered since 1973. This should cause us to weep. This shatters my heart and soul. According to the CDC, in 2018 614,829 abortions were reported. If you divide that by 365, that is 1,684 abortions per day. It has been estimated that 6 million Jews died in the holocaust. The Washington Post reported that it could be upwards of 11 million Jews and “others” were killed. There have been a little less than five times this amount of babies killed since 1973. This is a wicked use of the sword and we must oppose it.
Argumentation:
So when should Christians not pay taxes? If there is a time where taxes are used in a wicked way as the sword is currently being used, we must not pay it! We must oppose it as we oppose the misuse of the sword. God gave the sword and taxes to the rulers. If they use this wickedly, we must scream and refuse to comply. For example, if the Hyde Amendment is repealed, then we should do all we can to not pay those taxes. We must fight against that. The Hyde Amendment is the provision that keeps our taxes from being used to directly fund abortion. Were it to be repealed our money would be directly funding murder. We should protest it’s removal, fight against it’s removal in the legal battles, appeal to our leaders, and more. There are current proposals to repeal this, so I encourage you to keep your eyes on that and write your congressmen to oppose its removal. But the principle remains.
To illustrate this same point, in A.D. 70, Rome destroyed the Temple. According to history, the Romans then used the very tax that is covered in our text to fund the building of their pagan temples. It was not wrong for Jesus and Peter to pay the tax in this passage, so they did. However, post A.D. 70, Christians should not have paid that tax. They would have been directly funding pagan worship. It would have been the same as walking into a pagan temple and making an offering.
Transition:
However, there are many many times where it is not cut and dried. There are many times where funds may or may not be used to directly dishonor God. So let’s look at the third time. When Christians must exercise wisdom.
3. When Christians Must Exercise Wisdom.
3. When Christians Must Exercise Wisdom.
Argumentation:
When it is foggy or confused, Christians must exercise wisdom. It may be wrong or it may be fine to pay some fees or taxes. In this I encourage you to appeal to the Spirit within you. As Christians, we are indwelt with the Holy Spirit. Seek guidance and follow God. But as a rule of thumb, follow Jesus’ example. In this passage, He did not have to pay the tax, but for the sake of peace, He did. Do likewise. Seek the peace. Seek not to needlessly offend. If wisdom must be exercised, do so in a way so as not to offend. Er on the side of peace. Seek to follow Romans 12:18 “18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.”
There will be times where we must stand alone and defy tyrants. There are times where we must be like John Knox and say “Resistance to tyranny is obedience to God.” And in those times we must remember another saying of Knox, “a man with God is always in the majority.” Seek peace, stand firm. There are times we can and should move, but there are times when we must not budge one inch. This is why we find prayers for boldness so often in the Bible. This is not easy. It is hard and we must be bold. We must fear God.
Perhaps throughout this entire sermon you have been angry because this sermon seems to be political in nature. I would like to say that it both is and is not political. The Bible speaks to how we are to handle relations with righteous and evil governmental systems. By nature, dealing with passages like this are political. However, they also are not necessarily political. They are moral. Our allegiance is to our King. This is a political allegiance, but it is also our moral allegiance. We are to submit to our God our King. This means that we follow God’s commands and teachings about taxes. It means that when we defy our earthly rulers, we do so out of obedience to our Heavenly Ruler. We must obey God rather than man. This means we lawfully submit and also that we lawfully do not submit. God has spoken, we must obey.
Transition:
But there is one other question this text raises. Are you a Son of the King?
Are You a Son of the King?
Are You a Son of the King?
Application:
I do not know the hearts of anyone here. I do not know if you love me or hate me. If I cannot know this, I cannot see if you are saved of unsaved. I do not know if you love God or hate Him. Jesus was the Son of God. It exempted Him from the temple tax. Jesus also applies this to Peter. Peter was a son of the King through faith in Jesus. He was saved.
Are you? Are you trusting in Christ alone for your salvation? In comparison, discussion about taxes are insignificant. Are you even a son of the King? Where is your faith? You cannot walk in obedience to God if you are not saved. Are you of His flock? Scripture makes it clear. If you confess with your mouth Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. This is the promise. You too can be a child of the King. Repent of your sins and trust in Christ alone for your salvation. If you call out to Him, you will be saved. If you have not done this, do this today. You will be forgiven. You will be saved. Your sins will be washed white as snow.
Prayer:
Pray for boldness and wisdom.
Communion:
If you are here and you are saved, you are allowed to partake of a great honor and blessing. Often our hearts can be weighed down by life. Our sin can cause our souls to grieve. Life can be a burden. I confess I am weighed down greatly by life right now. I longed for this moment. I longed to be able to gather with you around the Lord’s Table. Here we come to commune together and with the Savior. We eat His body and drink His blood. We physically are reminded and remind one another of the truth of the gospel. We come together and are reminded that it was nothing of ourselves that saved us. We are saved by what Christ did in our place. We are allowed to gather here and rejoice that He died for us. He bought us with a price, we are His. We are no longer of this earth but are citizens of a better country. What a blessed grace.
If you are saved, you are trusting in Christ alone for salvation, I invite you come and commune around the Lord’s Table.
Matthew 26:26-29
26 Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.”
Let us take of the bread.
27 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, 28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
Let us take the cup.
29 I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”
Closing Hymn:
Closing Benediction:
Romans 12:9-21 9 Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. 10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. 11 Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. 13 Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.
14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. 17 Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. 19 Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” 20 To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.