[0:00] Thank you, Callum. It's good to be back with you again on the Lord's Day. We'll begin our time of worship and before we sing, we'll read some words from Isaiah chapter 55.
[0:15] Isaiah chapter 55. And at the beginning of the chapter, we hear that gospel call. Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters. And he who has no money, come buy and eat.
[0:29] Come buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me and eat what is good and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear and come to me. Hear that your soul may live.
[0:56] Let's worship God and sing to his praise. We sing from Psalm 51, the traditional version of the Psalm, page 281 in the books. Psalm 51. And we sing from verse 7 through to verse 13.
[1:18] Do thy with hyssop sprinkle me, I shall be cleansed so. Ye wash thou me, and then I shall be whiter than the snow. And as we think about that prayer that's answered in Christ, we remember today the cost at which the cleansing for our souls came. And we rejoice in the salvation that is gifted to us as we come to Jesus.
[1:40] So, Psalm 51, verses 7 to 13. And we'll stand to sing to God's praise. Psalm 52, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, Thank you.
[2:45] Thank you.
[3:15] Thank you.
[3:45] Thank you. Thank you.
[4:20] Thank you. Let's unite our hearts in prayer once more. Let's pray.
[4:37] Let's pray.
[4:58] presence of God. We thank you for the call that we so often turn to in the psalm that says, be still and know that I am God and I am with you. So we pray, Lord, that we would know that sense of your presence with us this morning as we come together in worship, as we gather together around the Lord's table. We thank you that we do so as sinners who are turning unto thee, we come as sinners who recognize that we cannot save ourselves, but there is a Savior in Christ.
[5:39] And Father, we thank you for sending your Son, the Lord Jesus, into this world, for God so loved the world that he gave his only Son. Lord Jesus, we thank you for coming into this world to live for us that perfect, sinless life that none of us have or could ever live. We thank you for the righteousness that is so amazingly seen as we look to Jesus and as we read of Jesus in the Gospels. And even as we see the character and the wonder of Christ prophesied in the Old Testament, we see a perfect, sinless, spotless life. We see pure righteousness.
[6:25] Jesus is the image of the invisible God. And we thank you that our calling is to fix our eyes upon him.
[6:39] So enable us to do that, we pray, Holy Spirit, we ask that you would help us. We confess that we are so easily distracted. Our minds are so cluttered with many of the things of this world. And we pray that you would help us, Holy Spirit, to lift our eyes from ground level to the hills and to the one who made the hills, the God of heaven and earth. And we pray that this day, we would be once more amazed by the grace of Jesus, God's riches poured out upon us at Christ's expense.
[7:18] As we draw near to the cross, once more we ask, Lord, that we would see the wonder of the verse that tells us that he who knew no sin became sin for us, so that we, through him, may become the righteousness of God.
[7:37] And what a wondrous thought that is. Give us faith, we pray, that we may grasp it more fully, that as we confess our sin, that as we confess our sin, it is transferred to Jesus, who made an end on it, on the cross. And as we believe in him, we become righteous in and through him, the great exchange.
[8:01] Help us, Lord, to see, to believe, to grasp, and to worship you with great joy, as we see all that you have done for us in Christ. So help us, Lord, we pray, as we seek to worship you. We thank you for those who are coming to the table for the first time this morning. We pray for Delina and the Gaelic, as we pray for Rory John and all who gather there, that they would know your presence and help, as we pray for that also here.
[8:32] And we pray also for Martin. And we ask, Lord, that you would bless him. We thank you that, as a young man, he has professed that his faith is in Jesus. And we ask, Lord, that you would help him, not only as he sits at the table today, but as he rises from the table, as he goes back to school, as he's amongst his friends. We ask that he and each one of us who profess Christ would be salt and light, wherever you put us. So hear our prayers. Guide us and lead us in worship. Take away our sin, we pray. We have confessed it in the psalm, as we have taken upon our lips that psalm of repentance. And as again, Lord, we confess our sin in the quietness of our own hearts. We pray that you would cleanse us in the blood of Christ, that you would give us the assurance of the pardon that is ours in Jesus. And that you would give us the joy of knowing peace with God and the promise of resurrection life. Even as we rise from the table, we do so remembering that we do this only until Jesus comes. And this day, and every Lord's day we are given, we are reminded of the fact that our Savior lives and one day will return. And we pray that we would be found ready. Hear our prayers go before us, we ask in Jesus' name. Amen.
[10:10] It's good to see and hear one or two boys and girls here. I'm scanning the church to see where I can see them, but I think you've all been elevated to the upper levels. The chances of you speaking to me from over there are quite slim. Unless Ali Moli's son's here, and he'll certainly speak to me from whatever angle he might be. So I thought I would just show you something today. And boys and girls, you might need your binoculars. But can you tell me, what's this? It's on my hand. I take it off.
[10:53] What's that? Can you see it? Anyone brave enough to shout out? He must not be in the service, is he? It's a ring, for those of you who can't see. And it's a ring that is on a, I've only got one piece of jewelry in my whole body. It's the only piece of jewelry I've ever worn in my life. And it's a ring, and I wear it on this finger. And when I'm wearing a ring on this finger, like everyone else who wears a ring on this finger, it tells you something. What does it tell you? Well, it tells you that I'm married. So back in Harris, my wife, Mary, is over there. And I've got three girls, Anna and Grace and Lois. But this ring is something that, it tells you that I'm married.
[11:50] Now, boys and girls, if I take this ring off my finger, and I put it now in my pocket, does that mean that I'm not married anymore? Well, no. I'm still married. It's not the ring that makes me married. It's just a sign. It's a sign that tells other people that I'm married, and it's a sign, you could say, that helps me to remember. If I would never dare forget.
[12:20] But it helps me to remember on Valentine's Day that I'm married, and I better go out and buy a card and chocolates or whatever. So the ring is not the thing that makes me married.
[12:34] It's a sign, and it's a reminder of the fact that I'm married. And boys and girls, the thing that you see today that's different from most Sundays is that there is a table down at the front here. And on the table, there's bread and there's wine. And the bread reminds us of the body of Jesus. He gave himself for us. And the wine reminds us of the blood of Jesus.
[13:12] It takes us to the cross, where we remember that Jesus, he bled and he died to take our sin away. And when we eat the bread, and when we drink the wine, we're saying that we're Christians.
[13:31] See, everybody who takes the bread and takes the wine today, they are saying as they take it, I'm a Christian. Now, is it the eating of the bread and the drinking of the wine that makes them Christians? No, it's not.
[13:48] These things are just signs. And they point us to Jesus. And when we come and we sit at the table, as this is called, and we take the bread and we take the wine, we're saying, Lord Jesus, I trust in you.
[14:04] We're saying that to Jesus. But we're saying to the people around who are watching, I'm not ashamed to say that I'm trusting Jesus. I'm a sinner who is trusting Jesus as my Savior.
[14:24] One last thing before you go away to Sunday school. What do you think Mary would say if I went home or if I moved to a new place on the mainland? And I said, I'll tell you what, Mary, I do love you, but I'm going to take the wedding ring off. And I think from now on, we should keep our marriage a secret.
[14:51] Even though I love you, I tell you what, I don't want anybody to know about you. And I don't want anyone to know that we love each other and that we're married. Will that be okay? What do you think she would say? I think she would say a whole lot.
[15:07] I don't think she would be very pleased if I was going to say, I'm not brave enough. I'm a bit ashamed to say that I'm married to you. That's not okay. If we love each other, we wear the ring.
[15:26] And we tell people that we're married. And if we are trusting Jesus, if we love Jesus, if he's taken our sin away, if we are his people, it's not okay to not come to the table.
[15:47] We must hear what Jesus says. And he says, do this to remember me. Do this. Take the bread, take the wine, sit at the table to tell people that you love me and that you're trusting me.
[16:04] And so that's what we do as we come to the table today. So let's pray again just for a moment. Lord Jesus, we thank you that you love us. We thank you that we can trust you.
[16:16] We thank you that you went to the cross to take our sin away. And that the bread reminds us of your body that you gave for us. And the wine reminds us of the blood that was shed to take away our sin.
[16:31] We ask, Lord, that every one of us would be trusting you. That our sins would be washed away. And we pray that if there's anybody here who is trusting you, but isn't yet telling anybody that they're trusting you, we pray that even today that would change and that they would want to come and tell people that they are Christians.
[16:55] Be with the boys and girls. Help them as they go to Sunday school. Open their minds and their hearts that they would remember their creator and that they would trust Jesus as their saviour in the days of their youth.
[17:07] Bless them, we pray. And we ask all this in Jesus' name. Amen. We're going to sing again to God's praise. And we'll sing this time from the Sing Psalms version of Psalm 23.
[17:25] Psalm 23. And that is on page 28 of the book. And notice what we're saying in that psalm.
[17:35] We're saying, we're saying the Lord is my shepherd. Not just that he's the shepherd, but we're saying the Lord is my shepherd. And so we'll sing this psalm.
[17:49] Psalm 23, the whole psalm to God's praise. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
[18:00] έ έ έ By wandering steps he brings back to his way, in straight paths of righteousness making me stay, unless he has done his great name to display.
[18:42] Though I walk with death's honey where darkness is near, because you are with me no evil I fear, your wrath and your suffering be comfort and cheer.
[19:05] And the sight of my enemies at table you spread, the oil of rejoicing you pour on my head, my cup overflows and ungracious regret.
[19:26] O jury, your covenant, mercy and grace, will follow me closely in all of my ways.
[19:42] I will dwell in the house of the Lord all my days. If you could turn with me now please to Matthew chapter 11, page 984 on the Bible here.
[20:20] Matthew chapter 11 and just a short reading, as we had last night also from verse 25 to the end of the chapter.
[20:40] At that time Jesus declared, I thank you Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children.
[20:52] Yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
[21:09] Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
[21:24] For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Amen. May God bless that reading of his word to us. We'll sing again now to God's praise from Psalm 62.
[21:38] Sing Psalm 62, page number 80 in the book. We sing from verse 5 to verse 12 of the psalm.
[21:48] Find rest, my soul, in God alone. In him my hope is ever sure. My safety fortress, sheltering rock. In him alone I am secure. Down to the end of the psalm.
[22:00] Psalm 62, verses 5 to 12. To God's praise. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
[23:06] Amen. Amen.
[24:06] Amen. If you could turn back please to the passage that we read in Matthew 11.
[24:57] Amen. Amen.
[25:08] Amen. Our Heavenly Father we thank you that we find rest in God alone. We thank you that our hope is in Christ.
[25:22] Amen. And so we ask Lord that as we come back to the word as we hear again this invitation, this call that comes from Jesus to come to him.
[25:35] We ask Lord that we would find rest, that we would know the sure and certain hope that comes from being found in him. Amen. So help us Lord we pray as we meditate upon your word and what we pray for ourselves here.
[25:52] We pray for Rory John as he leads in the Gaelic. We pray for the children again as they go to their Sunday school class. We pray for many denominations around us in this town who gather around your word as we do at this time.
[26:07] And we ask Lord that whatever Christ crucified is preached that you would be working, that Jesus would be lifted up and that many would be drawn to him. So help us we pray in Jesus name.
[26:20] Amen. We pray for the έ voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy voy and vibrations in our phone that's calling us to respond to all manner of things that come across our way.
[27:02] There are many calls that we receive from many different places and people. But what I'd like to do this morning in the time that we have is return to the verses that we have been in over the course of the weekend and the verses that we looked at yesterday evening.
[27:18] And in these verses, we hear the call of God upon us, the words of Jesus, the words of God the Son.
[27:31] And he says, Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. And I really want to just limit our thoughts this morning to verse 28.
[27:46] And think about this call, this verse, under four headings. We hear, first of all, in this verse, a universal call or an inclusive call.
[27:57] An all-inclusive call, you could say. That's the first thing that we'll think about. The second point that's connected to the first point is that this is a call.
[28:08] It's a call to, it's a call for sinners to respond. It's a universal, inclusive call, point one. It's a call for sinners. And these two points fit together because we're all sinners.
[28:21] So it's for all of us. The third point is it's a call to come to Christ. We're given clear direction on who we are to come to, how we are to respond.
[28:32] We come directly to Christ. And the final thing that we see in this verse is that it's a call to rest. It's a call to receive rest.
[28:44] So four very simple points that speak to us about the wonder of the gospel message, which is deep enough for every theological professor that ever lived to delve down into and never get to the bottom of.
[29:02] And yet it's simple enough for the youngest amongst us here to be able to take hold of and respond to. It's a call for the very young as it is a call for those who are up in years and who may be mature in the faith.
[29:18] So first point in the message this morning is this is a universal call or it's an inclusive call. Sometimes people criticize Christianity for being exclusive.
[29:33] There's nothing exclusive about the call that we have heard. This is a universal. It's a wide. It's an all inclusive call.
[29:44] This is a call for everyone. Everyone who has been given ears to hear is being called through this verse.
[29:56] Jesus says, come to me all who are weary, who labor and are heavy laden. Not just the respectable.
[30:20] Not just the clean living. Not just those who can trace a family heritage of church connections. This is a call for all.
[30:35] Sometimes we get offers through the post or on an email and it's something that grabs us. You know, maybe we see an offer for a free holiday or 20% off new trainers or whatever it is that interests you, that grabs you.
[30:52] It catches your eye and you think, I need that. I want that. And so we start to respond to this call that's come into our inbox. But we get five minutes into the application process and we realize, actually, it's not for us.
[31:06] The 20% off the new trainers is only for students. Or the free holiday is only for the over 70s or the over 60s or whatever. There's exclusions.
[31:17] There's qualifications. And as we scrutinize the text, we see that we don't qualify for this holiday or this offer. But when we read these verses, we see that there's no such exclusions.
[31:35] There's no deceptive small print that's hidden away in the back of this chapter. This is a universal call. It's an inclusive call.
[31:50] James Montgomery Boyce, the commentator, says, Jesus' words are for people of all ages. I see people of all ages here.
[32:02] All nationalities. And I expect there's people from many different places here. All temperaments. I don't know you well, but I expect there's different tempers in the room.
[32:17] And Jesus calls them. He calls us, says boys, exactly as they are. And the call is a call to come.
[32:28] As the hymn writer wrote in that old hymn, Just as I am without one plea, But that thy blood was shed for me, And that thou bidst me come to thee, O Lamb of God.
[32:46] I come. That's the call. It's a call to all. It's a call to come and to become as we are. And Jesus only knows exactly how we are and who we are.
[33:01] We can put on a face and we can deceive others about who we are. We can sometimes project an image that's better than we actually are. We usually try and work that way, don't we?
[33:12] We put on our best face. So it's at home that see exactly who we are. And yet Jesus sees more clearly exactly who we are Because he scans our thoughts.
[33:24] He knows our hearts. And yet, even though he knows us intimately, Even though he has known us since the womb, Even though he knows all our days, Past, present, and into the future, But we can't see.
[33:51] And yet still he calls us. Exactly as we are today. He calls us to come. It's a universal call.
[34:04] It's for everybody. It's an inclusive, wide call. Think about the verse that we so often quote from John 16.
[34:16] For God so loved the world. Not one little region. It's a big, wide word.
[34:27] The world. For God so loved the world That he gave us one and only Son That whoever. It's wide. It's universal.
[34:38] It's inclusive. That whoever. Believes in him. Would not perish. But have eternal life.
[34:48] I'm always conscious that when we come to the Lord's house, And especially around the table, The devil is very active.
[35:07] There's probably been battles in the house Before you left this morning. We are conscious of attacks and battles When we're coming towards the table. And the devil will love to Crash into our minds and say, What are you doing here today?
[35:24] What are you doing here today? Yes, them. I can see them. They should have a place. But what about you? What are you doing here today? With all the things you said this week And the things you didn't say.
[35:35] And the thoughts that went through your mind. What are you doing here? What makes you think that you can become a Christian?
[35:47] What makes you think that the Lord's table is for you? Surely you are excluded. Surely the Lord is not calling you.
[35:59] That's the assaults that we hear crashing in As God is working.
[36:11] The devil is seeking to counter. And yet through this verse, There is that loving, reassuring correction from Jesus.
[36:23] And he's saying all who have ears to hear Are called to come.
[36:36] None are excluded. It's a universal call. The second point is it's a call for sinners.
[36:48] Jesus invites all. In the NIV it says, All who are weary and burdened We are called to come.
[37:00] And it's sin That causes you and I To feel weary in our souls And burdened. So Jesus is calling sinners.
[37:14] And we know that because The language experts tell us That in the Greek The words used Are not speaking about Physical burdens And the Physical weaknesses And the stresses Of a difficult life.
[37:30] That's not the meaning That's captured in these words. The words that are used In this verse Are words that Referred chiefly to the burden We feel At the sense of our sin.
[37:44] It's a spiritual burden. It's a spiritual weight. The AV and the ESV Which we've read Speak of those who labor And are heavy laden.
[37:58] Those who are tired From laboring In our own good works Rather than receiving The grace of Christ.
[38:10] It's possible For us to work Furiously At religion And try to do All these religious things All these good works As a means By which we can try And persuade God To accept us.
[38:25] And if that's the way We're living Then we are very quickly Weary And burdened. It's a labor. To all those who labor All those who are heavy laden All those who are weighed down By the sin That plagues us Jesus is speaking to us And the call Is a universal It's an inclusive call Because sin is universal Sin is All inclusive There's no one in this room No one in this church Who isn't a sinner No matter how young Or how old How many times you've sat In the chairs How good our lives May look on the outside How much of the Bible
[39:25] We may be able to recite How high a mark We got in the catechism exams All of us are sinners. I was traveling from Edinburgh Through to Glasgow The week before last As I was coming out Of a meeting And I was fighting Against the clock Trying to catch a train And so I went charging Along through the station And through the The platform The announcement Was sounding And I jumped onto The first carriage That was on the train That was taking us From Edinburgh Through to Glasgow I sat down Relieved to be in my seat And once I sat down I thought This is nice Because the carriage Seemed to have a bit more space Than the ones I was usually in And the seats Were a bit more comfortable And it was just A nice atmosphere And I thought This is much nicer Than I remembered And then I I looked around And I noticed I was in first class
[40:25] And I wanted to stay in there But I could see the conductor Just a few carriages along And I knew That my ticket said Not first class But economy And that's what was important It wasn't what I felt I could have sat there With my arms folded Saying I should be in here But I had no I had no right to be in there My ticket said economy My ticket said You've got a cheap seat And so I had to accept that And move And as much as Some may not like This truth The Bible says That you and I Are sinners That's what our ticket says Romans 3.23 says All have sinned
[41:26] In verse 10 and 11 Of the same chapter It says There's no one righteous Not even one And that might sound like Bad news And it is bad news But it's bad news That drives us To the good news And the good news Is that Jesus came To seek and save The lost He came for sinners He didn't come for Those who claim To be spiritually healthy He came for those Who know That we are Spiritually sick He came for those Who agree With him That we are sinners He came for those Who know That we need him To be our saviour
[42:26] John Newton Who wrote the hymn Amazing Grace Towards the end Of his life He was Struggling with His memory And He couldn't remember Very much He couldn't even remember And recognise Those Who were his closest Friends And The record goes That one of his Closest friends Came to visit him Towards the end Of his life And John Newton He didn't recognise him He couldn't remember him And his friends said Well What do you remember If you don't remember me You know What do you remember And Newton said I'm quoting My memory Is nearly gone But I remember Two things That I am a great sinner And that Christ Is a great saviour And his mind
[43:27] May have been failing But still He had that vision And that faith Of a little child The faith That enables Us to enter The kingdom of God By recognising That the call Of God Is for sinners Like us Sinners Who need a saviour In Christ And as we take Our place At the Lord's table That is what We confess Not that we are Righteous None of us Can swagger in To a church With our chests Puffed out And take our place As those who think That we are good enough That we are righteous We come with our heads down We come in humility We come with reverence
[44:31] Recognising That We are not worthy But we are trusting In Jesus The only one Who was And is Worthy This is a table For sinners Saved By grace It's a A universal And inclusive call It's a call For sinners The third point Is it's a call To come To Christ And just the simplicity Of this Is just so Encouraging Certainly for a simple Mind like mine This is a call To come To Christ Where will we find Help Where will we find Salvation Where will we find Grace that Saves and sustain us In Christ No other place All of us I expect Will have been In the situation Where we're Looking for help We're looking for Assistance We're in a state
[45:32] Of need And we reach out To a place Where we think We're going to get help And the help Doesn't come So maybe We're struggling With our health And we pick up The phone And we make a phone call And we're looking For help And we get Passed from one Person to the next To the next To the next And we're no Farther forward Fifteen minutes later Or you phone With a problem With your broadband And you get You tell your story To the person At the end of the phone And they say Well hold the line I'm going to transfer You to this other Department You tell them Your story And they say Actually it's not us We'll transfer you To another department And you get passed From place to place To place to place And you get no help In this verse Jesus is calling Those of us Who are weary And burdened Those who are laboring And who are heavy laden And we are being called To come directly
[46:32] To Christ So let me ask That simple Direct question Have you come To Jesus yet?
[46:53] I remember When I was a Just a young boy Growing up in Stornway actually And when I was Aged eight I came under A real heavy Conviction of sin I did something Maybe I'll talk About it tonight If I've got a voice left I did something And when I did it The second I did it I knew I'd done The wrong thing I sinned And from that point On God Worked in my life To show me That I had a sin Problem And I knew that Even at age eight I knew about sin I knew about salvation I knew about heaven I knew about hell And I knew at that Young age That I I was lost And I knew that
[47:55] If I died that night I wasn't going to be With Jesus And it Scared me And this weight Of sin Was pressing down On me And when I was Playing football Or busy with my Pals I would kind of Be distracted But when I was On my own again I just felt that That conviction of sin Pressing down And I knew what to do About it I knew that I had To come to Jesus I knew I had to Ask for forgiveness I knew I had to Ask him to come Into my life But for two years The two saddest years Of my life Aged eight to ten I didn't come To him I was slow To come to him And for these Two years I was so Restless And so sad
[48:55] In my Heart So have you Whether you're Aged eight Or whether you're Aged eighty Have you come To Jesus That's the calling See when sin Presses in on us If we don't Come to Jesus We're going to Go somewhere else And we'll never Get rest Any other place Some people When they They start to feel Restless And when they Come under Conviction of sin They'll take To drink Or drugs Let's try And forget This Let's try And get a Buzz that will Just distract us From this And there's all Manner of ruin And disruption When we're Head in that Direction Some people When they come
[49:56] Under conviction When they come Under conviction Of sin And when there's That restlessness They bury themselves In work Some try hard To be better People Think they can Fix themselves But still The burden Is there The weight Is there And that Weariness That burden That sense Of being Heavy laden It remains Pressing down In on us Until we Come to Christ Himself And so He says To us Today All of us Come to Me That was The call That was First heard In Matthew Chapter 4 As Jesus Speaks to Peter and Andrew He says Come to Me Follow Me And that's
[50:57] The abiding Call for all Of us It's a word For all of Us Every morning We wake Jesus Is saying Come to Me Abide in Me Walk Close with Me Enjoy The rest That only I can Give And to Call to Come to Christ Everything We need Is Finding Christ Think About The Sayings In John's Gospel That speak To us About how Jesus He He He gives Us Everything That we Need John 6 Jesus Says I am The bread Of life John Chapter 8 And 9 Jesus Says I am The light Of the World John Chapter 10 Jesus Says I am The door I am
[52:00] The good Shepherd John 11 I am The resurrection And the Life John 14 I am The way And the Truth And the Life John 15 I am The true Vine In Christ Alone We find Help In Christ Alone We find Salvation In Christ Alone We are Forgiven So we Are called To come To Christ And to Remain In Christ And that's What we Profess As we Take our Place at The Lord's Table We profess That we Have come To Jesus For grace We profess That we Are with Him A call That's Universal That's Wide That's Inclusive A call For sinners A call To come
[53:00] To Christ And finally A call To rest Jesus Says Come to Me All who Labor And are Heavy Laden And I Will give You Rest And in Just a Few Moments We'll Come to The Lord's Table We'll Partake Some of Us of The Lord's Supper It's a Meal that Was Instituted For us In order That we Will be Reminded Of all That Jesus Did for Us On the Cross At Calvary And the Cross Can be A hard Place For you And I To look Because There we See Our Lord There we See the One Who was Without Sin Taking
[54:02] Our Sin Upon Himself One Hymn Writer Wrote It Was My Sin That Held Him There Until It Was Accomplished His Dying Breath Has Brought Me Life I Know That It Is Finished And so The cross It's a Hard Place In Some Ways For us To Look Because There we See Our Savior Suffering For us We can Read the Account Callum Read From Luke 23 This Morning In The Home We Have That Short Account Of Jesus Suffering On The cross The Nails Driven Into His Hands And Feet The Sword That Peace Pierced His Side
[55:02] The Gasping For Breath The Suffocation The Physical Suffering That He Endured The Acute Pain That He Endured As He Hung On The Cross But That Was Not The Worst Of It Because When Jesus Suffered Physical Pain He Said Nothing But When His Father Turned His Face Away From Him When His Father Could Not Look Upon Him Because He Was Carrying My Sin And Yours Jesus In That Moment The God Man Who Had Always Known The Rest Of Being In His Father's Presence In That Moment As He Hung On The Cross As His Father Turns His Face Away Jesus He Lost
[56:03] That Sense Of Rest And As He Did He Cried Out My God My God Why Have You Forsaken!
[56:19] Me! And The Answer Is Because Of You! And Because Of Me!
[56:32] It Was For Your Sake And Mine! Jesus On The Cross He Lost His Rest So That We Could Receive It So That We Could Receive The Rest The Assurance Of Sins Forgiven And Peace With God And Eternal Life And That Is True Rest A Million Pounds Pounds In The Bank Is Not Rest A Permanent Job For Life Is Not Rest Marrying The Girl Or Boy That You Dreamed Of That's Not Rest Rest
[57:34] For Our Soul Eternal Rest Is Found Only When We Respond In Faith To Christ's Call To Come To Him And Every Time We Come To The Table We Taste Afresh Something Of The Rest That Is Promised To All Who Come To Jesus Come To Me All Who Labor And Are Heavy Laden And I Will Give You Rest A Universal Call A Call To Sinners A Call To Christ And A Call To Rest So Let Us Be Encouraged As We Hear The Call
[58:37] Of Jesus To Come To Him And To Come Back To Him If We're Drifting And To Take Our Place As His People At His Table Let's Pray Heavenly Father We Thank you Once more For the Gospel Call And We Pray That You Would Give Each One Of Us Amen Ears To Hear And Eyes To See And Hearts That Will Respond To The Call Of Jesus We Pray For Any Who May Be Sitting Here This Morning And Who Are Under Attack who wonder and stress as to whether they should even be at the table.
[59:37] We pray, Lord, that you would help them. When Satan tempts me to despair and tells me of the guilt within, upward I look and see him, Jesus there, who made an end to all my sin because the sinless Saviour died.
[59:53] My guilty soul is counted free for God the just is satisfied to look on him and pardon me. Give to us, Lord, we pray, that sense of the security of being in Christ and the grace, the lavish grace that is promised to us in Jesus.
[60:15] We pray for any who are here this morning and who are outside of the table, Lord, that you would strive with them from the youngest here to the oldest and we thank you, Lord, that you called the children to come to you.
[60:37] And when there were those who tried to push the children back, they were rebuked. And so we pray for the young ones here that they would hear the voice of Jesus and that they too would come and find that rest that the world cannot give that is found only in Jesus.
[60:58] So be at work, Lord, we pray and bless us, minister to us as we come to the table that we would know the taste of the grace of Jesus once more.
[61:10] And we ask this in Jesus' name and for his sake. Amen. Just as we come to the table very briefly, I want to think about where we look, where we look as we come to the table.
[61:26] And we're to look two ways. We're to look, first of all, at self. In just a moment, we're going to read the words of Warrant.
[61:37] And in the passage where the Lord's Supper is instituted, there is a verse that says, let a person, let a man, woman, boy, girl, as they prepare to come, let a person examine himself.
[61:56] We're very good at examining other people and saying, I'm surprised to see they were there. That's not your job or mine.
[62:07] Let a person examine himself. And as you and I examine self, we see sin.
[62:21] If we've got any clarity, any sense of who we are, as we examine self, we see sin. Sin that we are repenting of day by day, but still we see sin.
[62:39] Is that a reason to stay away from the table? Well, no, it's a reason to come. It's God, the Holy Spirit, who convicts us, who shows us our sin.
[62:52] The table is for sinners. Remember the story, you'll have been told the story a thousand times. Rabbi Duncan, the minister, the Old Testament professor, was preaching in a church one day, and he saw a woman he recognized as one of the Lord's people, who was broken by her sin.
[63:14] As the elements were being passed around, they came to her, and she passed them on, and dissolved into tears. And what does he do?
[63:25] He gets down from the place that he was standing, and he takes the elements, and he goes to her, and he says, Tack it, woman. It's for sinners.
[63:35] So as we come, we look at self. We examine self, and we see sin, and we repent of sin.
[63:50] But as Murray McShane says, and this takes us to the second place that we look, the place that we fix our eyes. We look at self, but then we fix our eyes on Jesus.
[64:02] Robert Murray McShane said, for every look you take at self, take ten looks at Jesus. So if you want a text to go forward with, you can take Isaiah chapter 45 and verse 22, which says, Look unto me, and be ye saved.
[64:30] And that's the text that we go forward on. Satan says to us, Look at the state of you. Look at the state of you and your sin.
[64:46] But the Lord says to us, Look at the sufficiency of your Savior. So looking to Jesus and trusting in Jesus, saved by the blood of Jesus, with our faith in him, we come.
[65:07] to warrant the passage from 1 Corinthians chapter 11 and verse 23. The Apostle Paul said, For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which he was betrayed took bread.
[65:27] And when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, Take, eat. This is my body which is broken for you. Do this in remembrance of me. In the same manner, he also took the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new covenant in my blood.
[65:44] Do this as often as you drink it in remembrance of me. For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.
[65:55] Therefore, whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.
[66:12] For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. So following the example of Jesus, let's now pray and give thanks for this meal that is prepared for us.
[66:31] Our Heavenly Father, we thank you for your word that we have read. We thank you for this sacrament that we are guided and instructed in as we come together as your people.
[66:50] We thank you that although these elements before us are just ordinary things in terms of their makeup and the way that we receive them, we recognize that they point us to the body of the Lord Jesus.
[67:09] So we ask, Lord, that we would discern the body and the blood of Christ, that we would remember him in all that we do at this time. We thank you for the mystery and the wonder of the verse that says, he who knew no sin became sin so that we might become righteous in and through him.
[67:32] We thank you that as John the Baptist saw Jesus, he said, Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. We thank you for the perfect sacrifice that was found in Christ for the body that was given and the blood that was shed that makes atonement for our sin.
[67:57] To help us, we pray, as we take the bread, as we take the wine, to remember the Lord Jesus. Take away from our minds every distraction and bring us once more to the cross that we may survey it and that we may once more be touched by the magnitude of the love of God.
[68:31] This is love. Not that we love God, but that he loved us and gave us son to be the atoning sacrifice, the propitiation for our sin.
[68:45] Give us eyes to see it, we pray. enable us to mourn and repent of the sin that so easily entangles us and yet enable us to rejoice in the salvation that is secured in and through the sufficient work, the finished work of Jesus.
[69:11] So meet with us, Lord, we pray. Bless us, we ask in Jesus' name. Amen. So the Lord Jesus, on the night in which he was betrayed, took bread and when he had blessed it and given thanks, he broke it and said, this is my body which is for you.
[69:43] Do this in remembrance of me. And in the same way, he took the cup and said, this cup is the new covenant in my blood.
[70:07] Do this as often as you drink it in remembrance of me. A very short verse as we prepare to rise from the table.
[70:20] Psalm 130 and verse 7, second half of verse 7, it says, plenteous redemption, plenteous redemption is ever found with him.
[70:34] with Jesus from all our iniquities.
[71:00] We are forgiven. but I want to underline that plenteous redemption is ever found with him.
[71:13] And that's a word not just for those of us who are at the table, that's a word that is extended to those who haven't this morning sat at the Lord's table. I remember taking a service in the, it was in the APC church actually in Stornley must have been 15 years ago.
[71:33] And on a Sunday morning we had preached and we'd had the sacrament. As far as I could see, the elder was assisting me.
[71:44] At that time there was no minister there. The elder who was assisting me would stand with me and after everyone I could see he wanted to be servant, he served. The elder stepped forward and he took the jug of wine and he filled the cup back up and he said nothing to me and he hadn't discussed it with me.
[72:09] And I looked at him and he looked at me and I looked at him and he looked at me and I wondered if this was his way of saying you've forgotten somebody and I was scanning around the congregation to see if there was somebody I'd forgotten but nothing was said.
[72:21] And so I prayed and we had the final praise and blessed the benediction. As soon as the service was finished I went to the elder and I said did I forget someone?
[72:35] And he said I don't think so. And I said well why after everybody was served did you fill the cup back up? And he said because I want everyone to be able to see that there's more left.
[72:51] And you can see this morning that there is more left. Plenteous redemption is ever found with him.
[73:06] And the call continues to be extended come to me. Be with me says Jesus. There is more grace there is more left.
[73:20] Come to him each one of us. Let's pray. Our heavenly father we thank you for it. We thank you once more that you've allowed us to be gathered around the table of the Lord Jesus.
[73:35] We thank you that once more we have been able to remember the Lord's death in place securing our salvation. We thank you that Jesus is our redeemer.
[73:50] And we pray that as we rise from the table we would do so with joy. The joy of your salvation of us restored to us.
[74:02] We pray that we would rise from the table strengthened and ready to go back into the world to be soft and be light. And we pray Lord that as we go from this place we would go encouraged in the gospel.
[74:20] We think even of the encouragement that is given to those who are given. Every time we gather around this table we are aware of those that we sit with but we are also conscious of those who once sat with us and we have gone from time into eternity.
[74:38] And yet we thank you that we have the promise in Christ that all who are believing in him, all who are with him have eternal life. So we pray for any whose hearts are sore, any who may have that sense of loss, so missing those who are absent who are once with them.
[75:00] We pray for your comfort to be given to them. And we pray for those who have sat through another communion season and who have not yet come.
[75:12] If there are any who have heard the voice of Jesus saying come unto me and rest, we pray that they would not hesitate but that they and we day by day would come to the Lord Jesus and find the rest that is found only in him.
[75:28] Hear our prayers, part us with your blessing we pray and we pray these things in Jesus name. Amen. We'll sing to conclude the verses from Psalm 72 Psalm 72 you'll find on page T14 and we sing from verses 17 to verse 19 of the psalm.
[75:50] His name forever shall endure, last like the son of Shal. Men shall be blessed in him and blessed all nations shall him call. We'll stand to sing to God's praise.
[76:01] His name forever shall endure last night the son it shall and shall be blessed in him and blessed all nations shall him call.
[76:37] Now blessed be the Lord our God the Lord of Israel voy voy!
[77:12] voy! voy! voy! voy! voy! voy! voy! voy! voy! voy eternity the whole earth is glorified and in solitude and may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all now and forevermore Amen Amen