IN THE DINING ROOM
Evening Worship
COMMUNION
April 2, 1978 Seven-thirty p.m.
PRELUDE OF SILENCE
Organ Prelude
“Bring Back the Springtime” Kurt Kaiser
Call to Praise
Hymn 166
“At Calvary” CALVARY
Prayer Pastor
Greeting our Guests/Opportunities for Service Pastor
Hymn 252
“Let Us Break Bread Together” BREAK BREAD
Offertory Hymn
“Jesus Paid It All” ALL TO CHRIST
Offertory Prayer
The Presentation of our Offerings
Offertory
“Unworthy” STANPHILL
Scripture LUKE 22:7-13
7. Then came the day of unleavened bread, when the Passover lamb must be killed. 8. And he sent Peter and John, saying, Go and prepare us the Passover, that we may eat. 9. And they said unto him, Where wilt thou that we prepare? 10. And he said unto them, Behold, when ye are entering into the city, there shall a man meet you, bearing a pitcher of water; follow him into the house where he entereth in. 11. And ye shall say unto the goodman of the house, The Master saith unto thee, Where is the guest chamber, where I shall eat the Passover with my disciples? 12. And he shall show you a large upper room furnished: there make ready. 13. And they went, and found as he had said unto them: and they made ready the Passover.
Journey to Dining Room for Observance of Lord’s Supper
#704 IN THE DINING ROOM
Communion
Orig. Date 4/2/1978
Series: Communion Lord’s Supper
Let Us Break Bread Together 252
Solo and Congregation: “Jesus is the Sweetest Name I Know”
There have been names that I have loved to hear.
But never has there been a name so dear
To this heart of mine, as the name divine.
The precious, precious name of Jesus.
Chorus:
Jesus is the sweetest name I know,
And He’s just the same as His lovely name.
And that’s the reason why I love Him so;
Oh, Jesus is the sweetest name I know.
And some day I shall see Him face to face
To thank and praise Him for His wondrous grace,
Which He gave to me, when He made me free,
The blessed Son of God called Jesus.
Hymn: “Amazing Grace” 165
Amazing Grace! How sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost, but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.
‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed.
Scripture: I John 4:7-11
7. Beloved, let us love one another; for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. 8. He that loveth not, knoweth not God; for God is love. 9. In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. 10. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.
Sharing of Testimonies
Chorus: “God is So Good.”
God is so good, God is so good,
God is so good, He’s so good to me.
Scripture: I Corinthians 10:16-17, 21; 11:27-29
10:16. The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? 17. For we being many are one bread, and one body; for we are all partakers of that one bread. 21. Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord’s table, and of the table of devils. 11:27. Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. 28. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. 29. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.
Hymn: “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” 111
When I survey the wondrous cross
On which the Prince of glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss,
And pour contempt on all my pride.
Forbid it Lord that I should boast
Save in the death of Christ my God.
All the vain things that charm me most,
I sacrifice them to His blood.
Were the whole realm of nature mine,
That were a present far too small.
Love so amazing, so divine
Demands my soul, my life, my all.
Scripture I Corinthians 11:23-24
23. For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus, the same night in which he was betrayed, took bread; 24. And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat; this is my body, which is broken for you: This do in remembrance of me.
Prayer of Blessing
Sharing of Bread
Hymn: “Break Thou the Bread of Life” 178
Break thou the bread of life, Dear Lord, to me,
As thou didst break the loaves beside the sea;
Beyond the sacred page I seek Thee, Lord;
My spirit pants for Thee, O living Word.
Thou art the bread of life, O Lord, to me,
Thy holy Word the truth That saveth me;
Give me to eat and live With Thee above;
Teach me to love Thy Truth, For thou art love.
Scripture: Mark 14:22
And as they did eat, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and brake it, and gave to them, and said, Take, eat; this is my body,
Eating of the Bread
Scripture: I Corinthians 11:25-26
25. After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. 26. For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord’s death till he come.
Prayer of Blessing
Sharing of the Cup
Hymn: “At the Cross” 157
Alas, and did my Saviour bleed, And did my Sovereign die?
Would He devote that sacred head For sinners such as I?
At the cross, at the cross Where I first saw the light,
And the burden of my heart rolled away,
It was there by faith I received my sight,
And now I am happy all the day.
Scripture: Matthew 26:27-28
27. And he took the up, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it. 28. For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
Drinking of the Cup
Scripture: John 13:34-35
34. A new commandment I give unto ye, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. 35. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
Hymn: “I Love Thee” 75
I love Thee, I love Thee, I love Thee my Lord:
I love Thee, my Saviour, I love Thee my God:
I love Thee, I love Thee, and that Thou dost know;
But how much I love Thee my actions will show.
Our Master hath told us to follow His steps
To love one another, forgive and forget,
To reach out, to follow, are His chief commands,
If we’ll only let Him, He’ll touch through our hands.
Now let us as Christians show others our love
And follow the sample of our Lord above.
As His Holy Spirit works through us each day
We’ll praise Him, We’ll praise Him both now and for aye.
Scripture: Matthew 26:30
30. And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
Hymn: “Blest Be the Tie” 256
Blest be the tie that binds
Our hearts in Christian love;
The fellowship of kindred minds
Is like to that above.
. . . Amen
JESUS IS ALIVE
#741 JESUS IS ALIVE
Scripture Matthew 28:6; Mark 16:6; Luke 24:5f; John 20:1f
Date 4/13/1979
Passage:
Matthew 28:6: He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.
Mark 16:6: “Don't be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him.”
Luke 24:5f: And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead?
John 20:1: The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre.
Timeline/Series: Easter
Introduction
If you, as a schoolboy, remember reading Cervantes’ story “Don Quixote,” you will recall that part of the fun of the book was in his strong imagination. He went out pretending to be a courageous knight. He fought windmills, satisfied that they were giants. He drove herds of sheep askew, believing them to be enemies of the kingdom.
Good sense and timing dictate that I should be to you, what I am. You do not need another pretender. I will speak about that which I best know, and my conscience leads me to believe that it is what you most need.
The gospel narrative wastes no words in dealing with the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, and no more worthy subject could be claimed for this occasion. Since we get caught up more in the crucifixion scene, I will claim the scene of resurrection for these moments.
While all of the gospels write about a single theme, they are not simple copies of each other. They emphasize different things out of the life of Jesus. They single out separate events that may speak more to what they want to say. Certain parts of the story are so important that each of these writers declares its integrity. This is the case of the resurrection.
- Matthew 28:6: He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay
- Mark 16:6: “Don't be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him.”
- Luke 24:5f: And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead?
- John 20:1: The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre.
Then there were those to whom Jesus appeared: Mary Magdalene, John 20:16; the other women, Matthew 28:9; Emmaus disciples, Luke 24:13f; Disciples Mark, Luke, John, and Thomas, John 20:26f; seven at seaside, John 21:1.
I. This is So Important Because We Make So Much Over the Death of Jesus: Jesus Christ, Superstar; The Late Great Planet Earth, Hal Lindsey; Jesus of Nazareth.
Good Friday has more appeal. It may be for some of the same reason that Thomas felt it necessary to touch the living Jesus before he would believe. Without us Jesus couldn’t make it!!!?
We’ve done our bit for poor Jesus. More here than at the sunrise service.
The Turin Shroud as told in The Silent Witness. More a case for His death than for His life. Satisfies a human propensity for physical evidence.
II. Of Much Greater Importance is the Reality that Christ is Alive.
There will always be those who want to intellectualize faith to satisfy human ideals. 1978 Act of God, Charles Templeton—a novel of the discovery of Jesus’ body and the effort of the church to hide this from the public; a few years ago, The Passover Plot; liberal theologians—Bultmann stated “A historical fact which involves a resurrection from the dead is utterly impossible.”
III. The Early Believers did not Say that Jesus was Spiritually Alive, but that He was Resurrected from the Dead.
These are not all the same. Many Jews already believed in life after death. Jesus died, albeit horribly, for the sins of people such as we; but what is important is that death did not have power over Him, but rather He over death.
There are three very significant reasons why this bodily resurrection is so important.
- It establishes unquestionably, the verdict of Holy God, upon the life (obedience) of Jesus. Acts 3:26 “Unto you first God, having raised up His son Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities.” Romans 1:4 “And declare to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.” The disciples then and now, by the way, had to have absolute evidence that Jesus was not just another flash in the pan.
- It gave absolute credence to the redemptive work of Jesus on the cross. Romans 8:11 “But if the spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, He that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by His Spirit.” II Peter 2:24 “Who in His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness.” I Corinthians 15:17 “If Christ has not been raised your faith is futile, and you are still in your sins.”
- There is a third reason. It means that death is a state of being enhanced through our faith in Jesus. Greek immortality was a state much better than cessation of being, but how much??? The resurrection proclaims that a Christ is alive, so, in Him, are we. There is total transformation of the whole person in a new and better life.
Conclusion
From an unknown source*:
“I saw the conquerors riding by, With cruel lips and faces wan.
Musing of kingdoms sacked and burned, There rode the Mongol, Genghis Khan;
And Alexander like a God, Who sought to weld the world in one;
And Caesar with his laurel wreath; And like a thing from Hell, the Hun;
And leading like a star the van, Heedless of outstretched arm and groan.
Inscrutable Napoleon went, Dreaming of empire and alone.
Then all they perished from the earth As fleeting shadows from a glass,
And conquering down the centuries Came Christ the swordless on an ass.”
Jesus came to die to live; to die for your sins and mine that we might live in Him.
John Michener captures somewhat of the essence of faith in The Source. Zadok the righteous (Abraham) hears El-Shaddai—“As long as you live old man, you will be free to ignore my commands. But in time I will grow impatient and will speak to others as I have spoken to Epher.”
The call of God had been to serve Him in the city. “My home is the desert,” Zadok said in self-justification, “and I was afraid to leave.”
“I waited,” El-Shaddai said, “because I knew that if you did not love your home in the desert you would not love me either. I am glad that you are now ready.”
*Harry Kemp
A TIME FOR CONFESSION
#734 A TIME FOR CONFESSION
Matthew 16:13-16, NIV Orig. 1-19-79
Rewr. (10-85) 11-7-89
Passage: When Jesus can to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Purpose: To use the occasion of the Lord’s Supper to challenge my people of the need to lift up life and voice in confession of Christ as Lord.
Keywords: Christ Lordship Lord’s Supper Ordinance Communion, Confession
Timeline: None
Introduction
Not many of us are generally familiar with the writings of George Buttrick. His ministry to God’s people ended [long ago]. His books are still in circulation, but may not be known except to an occasional pastor or Bible teacher.
Mr. Buttrick’s is a name often quoted in seminary classrooms. He left insightful material relating to the work of pastors. Speaking to the Senior Class of Princeton University a number of years ago, he issued a pastoral challenge. His ableness of speech came out of the fact that he then served as pastor of Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church in New York City. Several in his audience were themselves going into the pastorate. He urged these graduates to “be with their people.” They were to be listeners in the marketplace to understand where their people are in life, and what they are thinking. He advised what some might find contradictory. I quote, “When you are at Coney Island, don’t tell the people of the concessions on the Boardwalk, about which they already know; tell them of the mystery of the sea, about which they do not know.”
It is a late hour in the saga of the evolution of life. We gain wonderful knowledge about our world every day. But the more informed we become about the world, the less concerned we seem to be for the mysteries of Christ. The question was asked of the disciples, for which we must have an answer: “Who do you say that I am?” I must know the answer. So must you!
I. It is Firstly a Question of Determination. V.13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” Examining the context we know that Jesus is on His way to Jerusalem. Luke 9:51: “He steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem.” (He fully/finally determined.) It is with knowledge of His death. He knows it will be violent.
Caesarea Philippi arcs His course southward. It identifies the time when Jesus’ public popularity is on the wane. Matt 13:1 “The same day…great multitudes were gathered unto him.” 12:46 “So many sought him (His mother and brothers)…could not get close.” 9:8 (after healing a paralytic) “when the multitudes saw it they marveled and glorified God who had given such power to men.”
We will not again see this public acclaim until Matthew 17:1-6: After six days Jesus took with Him Peter, James, and John the brother of James and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There He was transfigured before them…The disciples fell on their faces. Matthew 17:24 “Does your Teacher not pay temple taxes?” Mt 19:1-3: “Some Pharisees came to him to test him.” Mt 21:15: And when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did…they were indignant.”
It is as if some line of demarcation has been passed. Jesus had always faced opposition. But He had lived in the sunshine of a ministry marked by blessings/benefits to people around Him. He perceives the sun slipping behind the clouds, darkness invading the land. As He faces down Mt. Hermon’s flank, He knows another mount, called Golgotha, must soon be scaled.
“Up Calvary’s mountain, one dreadful morn, walked Christ my Saviour, weary and worn;
Facing for sinners death on the Cross, that he might save them (us) from endless loss.
Father, forgive them, thus did he pray, E’en while his lifeblood flowed fast away.
Praying for sinners while in such woe; no one but Jesus ever loved so.”
II. Secondly, it is a Question of Decision. V 15: “But who do you say that I am?” There was no debate about a right answer to this question. It was answerable in different ways: Saviour, Son of God, Anointed, Messiah. But all are answers that allude to God’s forgiving grace in Christ: that man has a sin problem; that only God’s answer suffices. Matthew 3:15 John hesitated when Jesus presented Himself for baptism. (Not because he didn’t know who Jesus was, but because he did. “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.”
Too many today are uncertain as John was, but their confusion is from the speculation of doubt. There was speculation even back then. Healed people were instructed not to tell. (Matthew 8:4/9:30.). Evil spirits guessed His identity and were commanded to silence. Even John the Baptist later sent for confirmation. Luke 7:19 “Are you the Coming One (anointed) or do we look for another?” Jesus accepted this reticence. Luke 7:23 (His answer to John): “Blessed is he who shall not be offended because of me.”
Deal with your decision on the basis of being offended because of Jesus. Are there times when it embarrasses you for people to know you are a believer? During social upheaval do you tend to remain non-committal? Does the Swygart/Gorman controversy offend you? What about the SBC leadership stand-off? Are moral crises requiring polarization? There were reasons for reticence then. Jesus was not what the people expected in Messiah. He clearly was interested in more than mainline Judaism.
The militant sought to use Him to address their purposes. John 6:15 “When Jesus perceived that they would come and take Him by force to make Him a king, He departed again into a mountain alone.” There are even good reasons for reticence today: We faced the burden of our sin. The age grows the more complex, and the void grows wider. The lateness of the hour suggests the gravity of unbelief. The message is so unlike the means for making it known.
How do you describe a mountain panorama? The Grand Canyon? A beautiful sunset? A matchless symphony? A 50th anniversary of a devoted couple? But we do try, don’t we? And as well, we must share with those around us our faith in Christ.
“Who do you say the Son of man is?”
Conclusion
Do you recall the story from Uncle Tom’s Cabin? Tom was on the barge being taken with other enslaved people to the riverside plantation of Simon Legree. The name still makes us draw up in dread. Tom was trying to console another who had been sold away from wife and children. “Come unto me, all ye who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” “Them’s good words,” said the other, “but who says ‘em?”
In a dark hour in Thomas Carlyle’s life, someone read to him from John 14:1. “Let not your heart be troubled…in my father’s house are many mansions.” The essayist replied, “Aye, if you were God, you had a right to say that; but if you are only a man, what do you know more than the rest of us?”
It is thus the Christ who calls us to answer: “Who do you say that I the Son of man am?”
IN THE WAY
#140 IN THE WAY
Matthew 19:13-15 NIV Orig. 7-11-65 (9-73)
Rewr. 8-25-88
Passage: 13 Then people brought little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked them. 14 Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” 15 When he had placed his hands on them, he went on from there.
Purpose: Approaching the new church year, to remind my people of our need to offer ourselves in service to the needs around us.
Keywords: Christ the Saviour Heritage Hunger
Children Home Special Day
Timeline/Series: New Church Year
Introduction
Both of the presidential candidates are talking about things important to all of us: childcare, education, patriotism. Private education has become a felt need for many parents. We are reading more and more about parents who are being allowed to educate their children at home.
Problems in the schools, public and private, are rife. One is put in mind again of the Baltimore woman who brought suit against her county school board. She claimed that her son, in choosing not to participate in what she called religious exercises, was being unduly ostracized. At that time, the schools opened with scripture, and with the recitation of the Lord’s prayer. Children who did not wish to participate were allowed to excuse themselves and leave the room.
Two hundred years ago, and many of the years since, every school of higher education in this country was connected with some church denomination. Except for the joint effort of Christian people, there would have been no higher education on this continent. Most of those colleges and universities are still around: Colgate, Bucknell, Princeton, Brown, Columbia, and many others. They are, however, no longer denominationally aligned. Then, the terms, “education” and “Christian education,” were synonymous.
In light of what is happening in education today, it is no longer remotely conceivable that our children will not be challenged by spiritual things in public or private education. We must be sure that our churches do our utmost to provide this vital service. Every Christian is obliged to offer himself/herself in this essential kingdom service.
I. First, There Must Be Education. The words of Matthew are that Jesus “blessed them.” It is a heritage of Judeo/Christian conviction. Every person in this land is better off because of our heritage. Many do not acknowledge it. Yet, they feast on what these religious imperatives have given. It is one God, living, loving, working through the evils of satanic influence. Adam was warned after his compromise: “By the sweat of your brow you will eat bread.”
This life knows no true good that comes without cost. There is a truism: “There’s no free lunch.”
Our heritage is not only Judeo-Christian, but set in a free republic. Whatever your genetic origins, what would life be in those origins? At once remembering the price paid by our forefathers for this, we are not that far removed from forebears who tilled the ground behind hand-forged plows, and unrelenting oxen, carrying a blunderbuss for protection. You worry about the cost of living: They paid dearly for meat and potatoes.
The blessing is that the Kingdom of God has come among us. It is as near as breathing and sunshine. It does not come with little children, but from little children who are brought to Him.
True prosperity is not material but conditional. The need of the hour is in the Kingdom of God. So we are not the answer. These, our children, are not the answer. All of us become the KINGDOM. That’s the answer.
Since the Bible is taken from the school, we must pinpoint its value as never before. We need sixty-seventy people involved in Christian education. We have no more than half. Church Training is an eight-cylinder engine beating on two. Missions and music are hanging on the hope and whisper of half-a-dozen.
We start next week. What will you as a Christian be doing between morning worship services from one Sunday to the next?
II. Secondly, We Must Grasp the True Vitality of the Home. “Then there were brought to Him little children.” The event here described is simply that of caring mothers bringing a child to some distinguished rabbi for a blessing. It was a common occurrence. It happened on the child’s first birthday.
A question of responsibility is put forth. What is the bottom-line charge? It is, of course, parental. The best thing the church can do for parents is to convince them. Proverbs 22:6 “Train up a child in the way that he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” III John 4 “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.”
In an age that seeks liberation from all strictures, some demands are to be put in place. There is little efficacy in marriage. The license doesn’t prove God is in it. Being a biological parent is no proof of Christian manhood or womanhood. The mystery content is found in commitment: commitment to God; commitment to each other forever; commitment that children will be reared in an atmosphere of love and trust.
“My parents forced me” say the uncaring and the uncommitted. “I will not force religion down them.” Would you force air if suffocating? If cancer attacked, would you force treatment? Would you advise seat belts, helmets?
If they were hungry, would you not force food for them? During the noon meal in this country, 1200 children worldwide will starve to death. 30,000 will die today. 12-18 million people will die this year. Check the label to see where a gift was made.
III. And Three, Certainly not the Least Important, Is to Encourage Them to Faith in Christ. “Suffer the little children and forbid them not. We have long heard of parallelism in Hebrew prose. Something uniquely important is repeated. And as if to add further meaning, he repeats the concept positively then negatively. “Permit” is followed by “do not forbid.”
Perhaps we need to review some of the marvelous characteristics of childhood. Trust is the first essence of children. They readily forgive even to the threshold of abuse. They approach life with an eye for wonder. Obedience is natural to them. But disobedience is a learned ruse. Childlike faith is to live in trust of God, to think first of obedience, to desire to be forgiving, to contemplate the wonder of God’s care.
The best way to such faith is development over time, to so touch the lives of our children, to see other children whose lives can only be touched for good by the gospel. No matter what the age of need, it is still this child-like faith offering opportunity—not childish, but childlike.
And Jesus instructs us. We are not to be negative influences. But more, we are to be positive motivators urging spiritual children of all ages to the gospel: to Jesus.
Conclusion
We have approved our Nominating Committee report, and we have a full slate of workers. Next, the Finance Committee gets to work on the budget. It will need to be between $100,000 and $120,000. Peter spoke for the early church: “Silver and gold, have I none; but such as I have give I thee. In the name of Jesus, rise up and walk.” Such as we have also.
A WORD OF PERCEPTION (Fourth Word from the Cross)
#075 A WORD OF PERCEPTION (Fourth Word from the Cross)
Scripture Matthew 27:45-46 NIV Orig. Date 4/1/62 (3/80)
Rewr. Dates 3/25/87
Passage: 45 From noon until three in the afternoon darkness came over all the land. 46 About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli,[a] lama sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).[b]
Purpose: Continuing the Words from the Cross series with a special emphasis placed upon the sovereignty of God in behalf of His Son and His people.
Keywords: Christ, Death Sovereignty, God Commitment
Judgment Suffering
Timeline/Series: Words from the Cross
Introductions
Somewhere, Thornton Wilder has a significant line that declares “In love’s service, only wounded soldiers will do.” In that context, then, it should not seem unusual to us, or unreasonable, that Jesus became a “wounded soldier.” It was to that end that Old Testament prophecies foresaw Him as “man of sorrows.” But we must interpret that correctly.
Here we discover the degree to which Christ would go as a “wounded soldier.” More, it testifies that there is no degree to which He would not go “in love’s service.”
Eli, Eli; lama sabachthani? That is, My God, My God; Why hast Thou forsaken me?
What pain hurts more than aloneness? What hurt weighs more heavily on us than that of feeling forsaken, especially unjustly forsaken? Off-beat theologians have emerged, and in their effort to explain, have explained away this text. Jesus, they say, had lapsed into delirium. Others, that though conscious, the pain rendered Him verbally out-of-control. Yet others suggest that He was not forsaken but simply felt so.
Jesus did not ever give in to the flesh. Why should we think it is happening here? There was neither unconsciousness, uncontrolled delirium, nor mistaken anguish. Jesus felt forsaken because he was forsaken. For sin to be effectively dealt with, it was necessary for God’s complete disposition of it to take place. Christ was the instrument through which that disposition took place.
After having seen the great dancer, Pavlova, perform, someone asked her to explain the artistic meaning of her dance. She stood there drained of the last bit of her energy and replied, “Do you think I would have danced it if I could have said it?” For Jesus, words are an inarticulate description of God’s intent to save. The cross must be endured if we are to have perception of God’s love.
I. It is Perception, First, of Supernatural Covenant. Luke 24:44 “. . . all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, . . . , concerning me.”
Surely, this is not the only time that Jesus questioned the strange events of His life. Perhaps, as a small boy, He wondered of the unique events of His birth. Luke 2:19, “She pondered these things.” Perhaps, as an adolescent, He questioned why things of interest to others His age, did not interest Him. Luke 2:49, “. . . Wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?” Even as an adult, it shouldn’t surprise us if He wondered, despaired of unbelief all around. Matthew 22:5, “They made light of it and went . . . away.” Mark 3:5, “Being grieved for the hardness of their hearts.”
And whenever such times had enveloped Him, He always before had felt the deeper wealth of assurance. Boyish questions were answered with meaning of His name—Jesus: “He would save His people.” Adolescent wonderings were assuaged by His own love for the Father, and the Father’s house.
As an adult, little could have been more obvious than the signs of God’s presence. At His baptism, there had been the voice boldly declaring “Thou art my beloved son.” During the temptation in the wilderness “angels came and ministered unto Him.”
Starting at Cana one day at a wedding: John 2:11, “This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him.”
On a mountain side one day: Matthew 17:1f, “. . . There appeared . . . Moses and Elijah talking with Him.”
Toward the end of His ministry, at Bethany: John 11:41f, “Father, I thank Thee that Thou hast heard me. And I knew that Thou hearest me always: but because of the people . . . that they may believe . . . Lazarus, come forth.”
Even with all of this, His plea is the plea of a man alone. Not over-wrought psyche playing tricks; not low pain-threshold binding reason. It is divine covenant being completed with all of its wretched consequences.
There had likewise been 3 words to the cross. “If Thou be the Christ, come down,” was the one thing He could not do. “He saved others, Himself He cannot save,” was a true saying. “Remember me, when. . .” was a reminder that we, too, have our crosses in following.
II. It is Perception of Superhuman Commitment. John 12:46 “I am come a light into the world.” There are, of course, those who argue that Jesus was not forsaken. They claim some physical distress, that Jesus simply quoted Psalm 22 in its present context. Psalm 22:23: “Praise Him ye who fear the Lord; . . . do Him honor; stand in awe of Him. . . For He has not scorned the downtrodden, . . . but gave heed to him when he cried out.”
But the point is, here at Calvary, was commitment in the flesh. Luke 22:44 “Being in agony He prayed more earnestly; and His sweat were as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.” It was the kind of commitment forever an example to us. John 11:42, “. . . because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that Thou has sent me.” Luther and Calvin (233T20p139) say that these were hours spent in the torments of the damned.
Rambach said in Meditations On the Sufferings of Christ, “God was now dealing with Him not as a loving and merciful Father with His child, but as an offended and righteous judge of an evildoer. The heavenly Father now regards His Son to be the greatest sinner to be found beneath the sun, and discharges on Him the whole weight of His wrath.”
It is time, then, to pursue the measure of our own commitment. Isaiah 53:9f “He made His grave with the wicked . . . He was numbered with the transgressors. Galatians 3:13 “. . . redeemed us from the curse . . . being made a curse for us.” Philippians 2:8 “He became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”
What kind of commitment do we offer to compare with that? We expect to be painless Christians. An hour or two on Sunday morning is as near to Calvary as we intend to go. I forgot my checkbook so I’ll rattle some change God’s way. We plan our commitment around mediocrity.
III. That Brings Us to Consider Superficial Circumstance (Uncircumstantial) “Why hast Thou forsaken me?” Jesus surrenders to the high cost of God’s will. So are such times when we likewise must.
As Gideon (Judges 6:13) “If the Lord be with us, why then is all this befallen us? As Elijah (I Kings 19:2) under Jezebel’s threat he “arose and went for his life,” As Job (Job 30:20) “I cry unto Thee, and Thou dost not hear me.” The psalmist (Psalm 73:13) “. . . Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocence.” All would stand before us to declare faithlessness on their part, faithfulness on God’s part.
So often, that that is real in our experience is to become the circumstance of God’s blessing. Yes, Jesus was separated from the Father, forsaken even. But to remain as companions of sin is to remain separated from the Father. Our hope of restoration was fulfilled by Christ on the Cross.
Conclusion
Back in the early part of this decade the USS Hope made the newspapers for the last time. That ship, having brought medical aid to tens of thousands in third world nations, was trapped on a sand-bar on its way to the scrap yard.
There are too many people who have given up on hope. But we Christians must be the first to proclaim it. Because of God’s covenant, and Christ’s commitment to it, I can find reason to trust even in the most circumspect of circumstances. Ships of the sea, even ships of state, may flounder, but Christ gives me reason to believe through every consequence of my life.