The Authority of the King Questioned.
Notes
Transcript
Opening:
Good-morning Connection Church! I am so glad to be with you this morning! I am especially grateful that my whole family has returned! We have greatly missed you and we have greatly missed being together before the throne of God on the Lord’s Day.
It is wonderful thing to be able to gather together on the Lord’s Day freely. Were we forced to, we would meet in secret. But we have a great privilege that much of the world does not have. We are able to freely gather together and openly worship God together. This is not a privilege that I take lightly. We are not promised this freedom forever. So we praise God that He has blessed us with the opportunity to worship God openly and freely! This is a great gift, and we will use this gift as long as it is ours. And we will pray for boldness to be faithful should God remove this blessing from us. But until then, we will be open and bold in the freedom God has given us. We will sing loud the praise to God. We will fellowship with joy, inviting others to join us. We will rejoice to see our children trained up in the Lord. We will listen with active passion as God’s Word is read and preached. And we will humbly come before the Lord’s table to break bread together.
Introduction of the Text:
With this in mind, let us open to the text today. This morning we will be in Matthew 21:23-32. Over the last couple weeks, we have seen some hard things. We have examined passages that challenge our understanding of who Jesus is. We have come face to face with the anger of Christ. Jesus cleansed the Temple. He flipped tables and drove people out. Jesus was passionately angry. We saw last week the account of Jesus cursing the fig tree. This was also a hard passage. Again we saw the anger of Christ as He cursed the tree. The tree withered and died from His words. We have seen Jesus beginning His pronouncement of judgement upon Israel.
But before we proceed into this text, we must remember something. Matthew, who wrote this gospel account, wrote it for a reason. He had an emphasis and purpose in mind as he penned it. He wrote it to a primarily Jewish audience in the first century. Matthew is emphasizing who Jesus is. Specifically, Matthew is showing us that Jesus is the true King. Jesus is the son of David. He is the fulfilment of God’s covenant to David. God had made a covenant with David that he would have a descendant on the throne for eternity. The Messiah would come from David’s line. Matthew has also emphasized the deity of Christ. He has shown again and again that Jesus is God.
Matthew has paired these by constantly reminding us of the authority of Christ. That is one of the central themes of the book of Matthew. Matthew spent much of his book emphasizing the authority of Jesus. He has shown again and again that Jesus has all authority. Jesus has authority over the physical world. Jesus has authority over creation. Jesus has authority over sickness. Jesus has authority over death. However, Jesus has authority over all things, not just the physical. Jesus has authority over sin. Jesus has authority over life. Jesus has all authority. And here in this passage, we see the religious leaders question the authority of Jesus. Here we see the authority of the King questioned.
Reading of the Text:
Would you stand with me for the reading of God’s Word.
Matthew 21:23-32
THE AUTHORITY OF JESUS CHALLENGED
23 And when He entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to Him while He was teaching, and said, “By what authority are You doing these things, and who gave You this authority?”24 And Jesus answered and said to them, “I will also ask you one thing, which if you tell Me, I will also tell you by what authority I do these things.25 The baptism of John was from what source, from heaven or from men?” And they began reasoning among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’26 But if we say, ‘From men,’ we fear the crowd; for they all regard John as a prophet.”27 And they answered Jesus and said, “We do not know.” He also said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.
PARABLE OF TWO SONS
28 “But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go work today in the vineyard.’29 And he answered and said, ‘I will not’; but afterward he regretted it and went.30 And the man came to the second and said the same thing; and he answered and said, ‘I will, sir’; but he did not go.31 Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you that the tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you.32 For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not even regret afterward so as to believe him.
Behold the Word of God. Let’s Pray.
Prayer:
Dear Heavenly Father. We thank you for the freedom you have given to us to be able to gather together freely. May we use this gift as you would have us. Lord, give us the boldness to be faithful should you ever remove this blessing from us.
Lord, we ask that you would use this time in your presence. May we boldly, but not flippantly enter your throne room. May we treat this time as you would have it. May we read your Word as if you were speaking directly to us, for we know that is what is happening. Lord, we know that when we read your Word, it is just as if you were audibly speaking to us. May we honor it as such.
Lord, we confess that we are sinners. We confess that we have broken your holy Law. We confess our own selfishness. Will you prepare our hearts for this time? Will you wash us clean of our transgressions? Will you forgive us, and cleanse us? We confess the truth that you have washed us clean. We confess the truth that you have made us new. We confess the truth that through your Son, we are made clean and righteous.
So now Lord, open the ears of the people here to hear the truth of your Word. Lord, I beg you to open my mouth to speak the truth of your word. Give us passion, humility, and strength to come before you and learn. We ask this in Jesus name, Amen.
Opening Illustration:
Transition:
As we open this text, we see that Jesus has entered into the Temple again. This is after Jesus has cleansed the Temple and cursed the fig tree. Now He is in the temple again and Jesus is questioned by the chief Priests and the elders.
Jesus Is Questioned By the Chief Priests and Elders.
Jesus Is Questioned By the Chief Priests and Elders.
Explanation:
The question in particular is twofold. First: “By what authority are you doing these things?” And Second: “Who gave you this authority?” What exactly are these two questions in regard to? Luke’s gospel says that Jesus was teaching in the temple. So are the chief priests and elders asking by what authority does Jesus teach? In part, that is likely. But if we take the context of what has happened, it is more likely that they are demanding what authority Jesus has been doing what He has been doing under? Jesus, possibly one or two days prior had flipped tables and driven people out of the Temple. Jesus had violently driven those who had profaned the temple out and then healed the sick. In all likelihood, these men were asking Jesus by what authority He had done these things. And this is a good question. The question in and of itself is not wicked. It is a good and upright question.
Illustration:
I love apologetics. Apologetics is the defence of the faith. I especially love debate and street evangelism. I enjoy studying how to defend the faith. I enjoy studying how to have effective conversations with people on the street. One of the most important questions you can know for apologetics is “By what standard?” That is the question that so much apologetics boils down to. When having a conversation with someone about faith, you must come to the head of the pin. And that question is the head of the proverbial pin.
“By what standard?” When someone makes a truth claim, you must know what their standard for truth is. Let’s take atheism for example. When an atheist makes a truth claim, you ask, “by what standard?” This boils it down to crux of the issue. Here is practical example. Let’s say you are having a conversation with an atheist and they say that murder is wrong. Now that is true, murder is a wicked and vile act. They are right. But their worldview does not support that claim. The atheist worldview states that nothing ultimately matters. According to the atheistic worldview, we are all just bits of matter bumping into one another. There is no grand purpose. There is no grand design. If the atheists were to have a catechism with the question “what is the chief end of man?” the answer would be a shrug of the shoulders. In fact, a consistent answer would be to get what you can. Eat much, drink deep, for tomorrow we die.
So you see, the atheist can claim that murder is wrong, but what is their standard? Their claimed worldview cannot substantiate that claim. They are making an empty claim. What does it matter if one bit of meaningless matter bumps into another bit of meaningless matter? Who is to say that the bit of matter with a knife had no right to shank that other bit of matter? All is meaningless in the grand scheme. Murder is wrong. However, They have no authority to make that claim. They are making a claim with no authority. And the question, “by what standard” reveals that. If a Christian makes the same claim, “Murder is wrong” and you ask, “by what standard?” They have a consistent answer.
The Christian says murder is wrong because the creator of the universe made each human in His own image. This means that every living person has intrinsic value. Therefore, God declared that murder is wrong. In fact, God declares that anyone who murders, should be put to death. This is how serious of a deal it is. The Christian is making a truth claim, and when you ask “by what standard they are making it, they have a consistent answer. What is the authority? The authority is that of the Maker Himself. God has spoken and made it clear.
Argumentation:
If some of your eyes are rolling back into heads at all of this, let me simplify. Every truth claim is a claim to authority. Every action is a claim of some form of authority. When someone says or does something, they are claiming some kind of authority. When I stand here and preach, I am claiming through my action and words that I have authority to do so. When a police officer pulls you over to ticket you for speeding, they are claiming authority over the roads and traffic. When a toddler yells “No” to their parents, they are claiming authority over their parents. Now obviously there are genuine authorities and there are false authorities. Or in other words, there are true authorities and tyrants. A tyrant is anyone claiming an authority they do not rightly have.
So this is a good question. It is a good and right question to ask, “by what authority do you do this?” It is good to ask “who gave you this authority?” In fact, this is a question that we ought to ask more often than we do. There are righteous authorities and unrighteous authorities. There are proper uses of authority and there are tyrants. The toddler telling their parent no is attempting to be a tyrant. And that child should be reminded of who really has authority. They should be punished so as to show that God has given authority over the child to the parents.
But that brings us to who gives authority. We know there are numerous authorities, but Scripture claims that all rulers are placed by God. That means their power comes from God, and they ought to use it as God has commanded.
Let’s look back at the text. These men are asking Jesus by what authority does He do these things? Who gave Him this authority? Like I said, this is a good question. However, I think it is obvious that these men did not have noble intentions. They were wicked. But what would the answer be? By whose authority did Jesus do this? Who gave Him this authority?
Remember who Jesus is. Jesus is God incarnate. Jesus is Immanuel, God with us. Jesus is the one who made all. All things are made by Him. No truth exists outside of Him. Nothing precedes Him. All authority is by and from Him. Because of this, one would expect Jesus to answer this differently than He does. One would expect Jesus to answer that it is by His own authority that He does this, and that He gave Himself the authority. This is true. In fact, Jesus alone could make that statement. He is the only one who could ever claim to be an authority in and of Himself.
Transition:
But how does Jesus answer? Jesus does not give a straight forward answer. Instead, He masterfully turns the question onto the chief priest and elders. Jesus questions the chief priests and elders.
Jesus Questions the Chief Priests and Elders.
Jesus Questions the Chief Priests and Elders.
Explanation:
In answer to their question, Jesus says, “I will also ask you one thing, which if you tell Me, I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. The baptism of John was from what source, from heaven or from men?” Jesus does not refuse to answer, He offers an answer if they only would answer one question. And if we think about it, were they to answer the question, the answer to their own question would be clear. If John’s ministry was from heaven, then clearly Jesus does what He does under the authority of God. How so? John testified that Jesus was the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the World. Therefore, it is clear that if John’s ministry was of God, then Jesus is the Messiah. If these men would answer Jesus’ question, then the answer to their question would be evident.
So how do these men answer this most weighty question? One would expect them to give it great weight. They ought to weigh it out and examine it closely. In a sense, they do just that. Matthew says, “And they began reasoning among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ But if we say, ‘From men,’ we fear the crowd; for they all regard John as a prophet.”
This stands in Scripture as a judgement on the chief priests and elders. They give no ear to the truth of Jesus’ question. They care not about the question. They only care about the perception of their answer.
Argumentation:
What wicked men. They care not to actually answer the question. They do not even ponder it. They ought to have taken council and actually asked one another, “where did John’s baptism come from?” The question should have weighed on them, “what if what John said, was from God?” Instead, they plot and scheme. Their hearts were so wicked and hard that they sought out an answer that would condemn Jesus rather then themselves. But even so, they saw their own condemnation, though they did not care about it. They saw that if John’s message was from heaven they were condemned. “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ They were right. Why did they not believe John? It is because they were wicked hypocrites. They also could not express the alternate, out of fear of the people. If they claimed John was not a prophet, then the people would stone them. The people knew John was sent by God. The people saw the truth, but these hard hearted serpents refused to see it.
Because of this, they answered Jesus that they did not know where John’s message came from. This was a lie. They did not even consider. They did not care for the truth. They only wanted an answer that would help them. So without consideration, they tell Jesus they do not know. They play the politician rather than seek the truth. Therefore, Jesus tells them “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”
Transition:
But Jesus does give an answer. He does what He so often does. Jesus tells a parable. In this parable is the answer to His own question, and by proxy is the answer to the question the chief priests and elders asked. Jesus tells the parable of the two sons.
The Parable of the Two Sons.
The Parable of the Two Sons.
Explanation:
This parable is only found in Matthew’s account, but it is rich with truth. Jesus, still speaking to the chief priests and elders says, “But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go work today in the vineyard.’29 And he answered and said, ‘I will not’; but afterward he regretted it and went.30 And the man came to the second and said the same thing; and he answered and said, ‘I will, sir’; but he did not go.31 Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you that the tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you.32 For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not even regret afterward so as to believe him.
In this parable we have two sons. They are opposites. The first son is verbally disobedient. The second son is verbally obedient. The father makes the same command to both. The father commands the sons to go into the field and work. The father has authority to do so, and he exercises it. The first son wickedly says that he will not go. He is verbally disobedient. The second son tells his father that he will go. The second son is respectful and claims he will obey.
However, here is where the heart of these sons shine through. The first son, after wickedly telling his father no, repents. The son ought not to have told his father no. But his heart begins to ache and he repents of his words. He then goes and obeys the command. He goes and works in the field. The second son had the words right, but was deceitful. He tells the father that he will go and work, but then wickedly disobeys.
Jesus then asks another question of the religious rulers. He asks them which son did the will of the father? The rulers answer well. It is clear. The first son did what was right. Though he initially sinned, he repented and did the right thing. The second son was full of the right words but did not obey.
Argumentation:
It is clear that Jesus is saying that the chief priests and elders are the second son. They make outward claim to be obedient to God, but are truly disobedient. This is a shocking claim. More shocking however is who the first son is. Jesus says the first son represents the tax collectors and prostitutes.
Transition:
This is shocking, but it is true. Jesus speaks of the repentance of the tax collectors and prostitutes.
The Repentance of the Tax Collectors and Prostitutes.
The Repentance of the Tax Collectors and Prostitutes.
Explanation:
You see, the tax collectors and prostitutes were wicked and sinful. They were engaging in acts that were evil and against God’s command. The tax collectors were thieves. They would rob people through their dishonest rates. They were wicked and vile. And they knew it. They knew what they did was wrong. They knew they were sinners before God. In the same way, the prostitutes knew they were sinners. They were making a living off of wickedness. They were clearly the first son. Their lives were an open rebellion against God. They were both living in flagrant sin. They were to son who would look at the father and say “No! I will not obey you!”
But Jesus’ comparison was true. They initially were disobeying God. But then they repented. They saw their sins and the Holy Spirit convicted them. The tax collectors were going home at night after robbing people and laying their under the weight of their sins. The prostitute would look at what she was doing and be crippled by the weight of sin in her life.
Argumentation:
This is the beauty of the gospel. Those sinners were weighed down by their sins. They were crippled by the vile nature of their lives. And then they heard John’s message. “Repent for the kingdom of Heaven is at hand!” That scruffy, camel hair wearing prophet was preaching forgiveness of sins. Could it be? Is it possible that there could be forgiveness? Could their sins really be washed away? The tax collector, haunted by the debt He owed God for robbing his fellow man day after day, would begin to ponder being forgiven. Would God really forgive him his debt? The prostitute would be laying next to her latest client and begin to wonder if God would really wash her impurity away? Could she be made whole again? Both had spat in the face of God. Could there be redemption?
Yes! Yes there was redemption! They could lay aside their sin and be given the righteousness of God! In the muddy waters of the Jordan river, they could find a cleansing flow. They would rush out into that filthy water. They would lay aside their sinful ways and would be plunged into that water. There, they would find new life. There, they would find forgiveness and obedience to God. There was transformation that happened in that river. The water was just water. It was not the act of being dipped in muddy water that washed their sins away. The water was nothing. And yet, it was everything. They admitted their sins, they asked God for forgiveness. They trusted in the promise of forgiveness. And as they were washed by water as a sign of their forgiveness, they found peace. The tax collector found that God had forgiven his debt. The prostitute found she was spiritually whole.
Transition:
The wicked sons and daughters found forgiveness. But there was another group. There were the vipers. There were the whitewashed tombs. There was the hypocrisy of the religious leaders.
The Hypocrisy of the Religious Leaders.
The Hypocrisy of the Religious Leaders.
Explanation:
Those who were under the conviction of sin rushed into the water to obey God. But the chief priests, the pharisees, the elders, the scribes, they all stood without moving. They were the whitewashed tombs. They were the second sons. They were the ones who claimed righteousness, but were dead in their actions. They claimed to be humble and repentant, but they lacked true repentance. They would fast and make themselves look horrible so as to give off the appearance of being humble. But they were all looks and no depth. They put on a good show, but were empty inside.
God commanded repentance, and they would say “Yes, yes Lord! We are the most repentant!” But they never repented. God commanded obedience. And they would bellow that they were completely obedient. Yet they were disobedient in their actions. They talked a good talk, but they failed to walk the walk.
Argumentation:
And yet, the condemnation is double for these men. They not only were this way at the start, but when they saw sinners being saved, they doubled down on their hypocrisy. One remembers the parable Jesus told of the Pharisee and the Tax collector in Luke 18. The pharisee looks and sees the tax collector and begins to boast to God that he is not like that sinner. The pharisees were true hypocrites. They would not even admit they were sinners. They honestly believed they were righteous and better than others because of their own works.
And even when they saw the tax collectors and prostitutes repenting, their hearts were still hard. What wickedness! They would claim obedience to God in word and then refuse to actually obey. They were liars and hypocrites! And here is the truth. The pharisee is not the one who teaches obedience to God. The pharisee is the one who believes they are righteous because of their works. The hypocrite is not the one who says we ought to obey God. The hypocrite is the one who claims to obey God and then doesn’t.
The purpose of Jesus’ parable is not to say that being a prostitute or tax collector is righteous. They were sinners! What they did was a wicked and offensive thing before God. They were sinful and their sin was called sin. Jesus and John the baptist both called these people to repent. The point is that these sinners did repent! Their sin was wicked and evil and deserving of hell. But they turned from it and obeyed God! They turned from their sin and found new life in Christ. Yes, Jesus was with tax collectors and prostitutes. But Jesus was not with them to justify their sin. He was with them to call them to repent.
I know that should be obvious, but we have massive amounts of Christians who do the opposite. They want to be seen as tolerant. They want to be with the tax collectors and prostitutes to justify their sin. That is evil! And if we are being honest, they do that in order to enjoy the sin themselves. This happens in many ways in many different churches. Some sins are clearly labeled as sin while others are passed over. Some sins are treated as unforgivable while others are justified. In our current church culture, being judgmental seems to be the unforgivable sin while sexual immorality and partiality found in critical race theory are the darling sins. This is in general the pop culture status of the church. We view calls to repent as judgmental. It is considered to be unloving to call people to repent of their sin and obey Christ.
Well, Jesus was the purest definition of love. He was perfectly loving, and He called sinners to repent. He was perfectly loving and He told them to repent. The difference is that Jesus told all sinners to repent. We tend to pick and chose. We tell some to repent and others that they are fine the way they are. It is popular in our current church culture to tell Christians who use mean tones that they need to repent. But it vastly unpopular to tell others to repent. We want to tell some to repent who coddling the sin of others. You can’t call abortion sin. You can’t call homosexuality a sin. You can’t call transgenderism a sin.
But here is the truth. This partiality in condemning sin is the exact same thing that the chief priests did. They were totally fine saying that the theft the tax collectors engaged in was sin. They were totally fine saying that prostitution was a sin. And they were right. Those things are sin. But if you pointed out to them that adding to the commands of God was a sin, they would lose their minds. That was their sin. That was the sin they were cool with. Don’t condemn that. They were fine if you said that breaking the sabbath was a sin. But if you pointed out that they were worshipping the sabbath rather than God, they may stone you.
The temptation is always to condemn some sin, while justifying other sin. Jesus was hated because He condemned all sin. There was no justified sin. The tax collectors were sinners. The prostitutes were sinners. The religious leaders were sinners. Jesus showed no partiality, and this drove the chief priests and elders insane with rage. They violently hated Jesus because He did not show them favoritism. Jesus saw their sin and called it sin. Jesus saw their wickedness and called it sin.
And when the tax collectors and prostitutes repented, they were freely forgiven. When the religious leaders refused to repent, they were not forgiven. Jesus did not water down the severity of anyone’s sin. But when one repents, there is forgiveness. The difference between the tax collectors and chief priests was not their sin, it was their repentance. One group was offended at being called sinners, while the others saw the truth of it. The tax collectors and prostitutes saw they were sinners. When John the Baptist and Jesus called them sinners, they agreed. They said, “Yes, we are sinners, what shall we do to be saved?!” When John the Baptist and Jesus called the chief priests and pharisees sinners they were offended. They plotted to kill Jesus and John
Transition:
This is the difference. Some are offended when called sinners. Some are repentant when called sinners. The gospel message is the same. Sin is the same.
Application:
The reality is that all are sinners. This means that you are a sinner. This means that I am a sinner. We are all sinners. And this message is offensive. But that is okay. All of our sin is offensive to a holy God. The question is not if you are a sinner. The question is will you repent or pretend to be perfect.
Will You Repent or Pretend to be Perfect?
Will You Repent or Pretend to be Perfect?
I am right now calling you a sinner. Will you be offended? Or will you say a hearty amen, thanking God for His grace to sinners. The chief priests, elders, scribes, and pharisees of Jesus’ day were offended. And we still have people like that today. When some are confronted with the truth of their sin, they become offended. “How dare you call this a sin! I was born with the desire for this sin!” So sorry, it’s still a sin. Repent and trust in Christ.
Now this is not to say that every person struggles with every sin. There are sins you engage in that your neighbor may never have even though about committing. We cannot call everyone is a thief. Not everyone is hateful. Not everyone is racist. But all are sinners. Perhaps there are some sins that everyone has committed. I think most everyone is guilty of lying. But a child who cannot speak is not yet guilty of that. Perhaps the only two sins everyone on earth is guilty of are the sins of pride and idolatry. We all fail to worship God how we ought. We all think too highly of ourselves. But that is besides the point. The point is that every single person is a sinner. We all have a sin nature. We all are born in sin. And we all commit sin. And if we are honest, we all have committed sin wilfully and for our own enjoyment. Just because your sin is different than your neighbor’s does not make you innocent. You are still a sinner. And you should not be offended when your sin is called sin. In fact, you should not be offended when any sin is called sin.
So will you repent of your sin or pretend to be perfect? Unfortunately there is no place for those who pretend to be perfect in the church. R.C. Sproul remarks in his commentary “I know of no organization other than the church that requires members to publicly declare themselves to be sinners before they can join.” To be a Christian is first to admit to be a sinner. This is the prerequisite. In this way, we all must be like the first son in Jesus’ parable. We all have refused to obey the Father. The question is, will you turn from your disobedience? I pray that all of you have and will continue to do so.
However, there is a chance that there are some of you who may be in the position of the second son. Perhaps you are here and you think you have it all together. I highly doubt that any of you think this, but if you do, allow me to dissuade you of this delusion. You are not free of sin. All people are sinners. All people are in need of the grace of God. So if you are here and are justifying any sin, I command you in the name of Jesus to lay aside that lie and repent! Come to the foot of the cross and find forgiveness for your pride and haughty heart.
Transition:
And this command of obedience is for all of us. Lay aside your sin and come to Christ. I of myself do not have authority. But Christ has all authority on heaven or earth. So I repeat to you Christ’s command. This is the word of the King. “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” Mark 1:15. This is the call to all people. This is the call we are to make to all, but firstly to ourselves. Repent and believe the gospel.
Communion:
And this is the beauty of the Lord’s Table. None are welcome here except those who have repented and believed the gospel. It is closed to those who refuse the call to repent and those who lie claiming they have no sin. However, for those who see their need for the savior, it is open. For those who have confessed their sin and trusted in Christ as their savior, the table stands as a permanent monument to the forgiveness of Christ. Here we eat the Lord’s body that was broken for us. Here we drink the Lord’s blood that was shed for the forgiveness of our sins. Here we come on equal ground. No one is greater, no one lesser. We are all sinners saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.
Dear sinner, are you weighed down by sin? Repent of it. Lay it aside and partake of Christ. Are you broken by the weight of you wretched sin? There is hope! Christ stands ready to forgive you. This is our blessed hope. Here, at the table that Christ bid us partake in, we find the savior ready to commune with us. Through this bread and blood stand the remembrance of the Savior’s sacrifice. What a joy it is to physically remember the gospel!
So I invite all of you sinners to come and confess that you are sinners saved by the grace of God. Let us take of the body and blood.
Take Communion:
Closing:
Now let us go from here in the knowledge that the one who has all authority in heaven and on earth has forgiven our sins. Let us go and no longer live in our sins but live in the righteousness of Christ! Let us sing out our praise to God as we go from here!
Doxology: