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[0:00] I'm going to give you all a very warm welcome again as we gather to worship God and come under his word this evening as we prepare our hearts for the Lord's table tomorrow. We especially welcome visitors into our midst this evening and also those who are tuning in online. We do ask that the Lord would bless us all together. We're thankful as we were hearing last evening for all the heavenly blessings that we have in Christ Jesus. And we come in his name this evening, thankful for all that he has done for us. And the psalmist asks a question in Psalm 116, how shall I thank the Lord? And he says, I'll offer salvation, take the cup, on God's name will I call.

[0:49] And that's what we prepare ourselves for this evening. As believers in Christ, we want to remember what he has done for us and to take off that cup of salvation. And we pray that God's spirit will help us and stir us up in that. The Kirk Session meets immediately after the service in the session room here next door. I'd be delighted to meet with anyone who wishes to join the congregation, who wishes to profess their faith for the first time, or either moving into the congregation as well, maybe by certificate too. You'd be very welcome to come and meet with us this evening.

[1:29] The services tomorrow will be English here in the church at 11 a.m. That'll be led by Reverend Murdoch Campbell. And the Gaelic service at 11 a.m. in the seminary, that'll be led by the Reverend Murdoch Campbell as well. And after the evening service tomorrow, there'll be a time of fellowship in the hall next door where everybody's very welcome to come through for that. And we'll hear a little more of both Murdoch and Callum's Christian experience. Again, I'll just give a very warm welcome to Murdoch to the pulpit this evening to lead us in our worship. We do look forward to his ministry this evening and tomorrow as well, and do pray for him and Callum as they lead us in our worship over this weekend, that we would know God's blessing as a people together.

[2:23] Well, good evening. It's lovely to be with you again this evening as we gather together for worship. I was just thinking as Callum was speaking, it's like the man has just stolen my sermon before I've started. So that's our text tonight. Before we even get there, Psalm 116 at verse 13.

[2:43] So Callum gave it all away before we reached there. But it's good to be together and it's good to worship the Lord together. So let us worship God this evening. We're going to sing to God's praise in Psalm 122.

[2:56] I don't think he knew that that's what I was preaching on, but it's always amazing when you're sitting behind someone and they just give it all away. It's so encouraging.

[3:11] Psalm 122 is in the Scottish Psalter, page 416. We're going to sing the whole psalm. As you know, Psalm 122, it's one of the songs of ascent. It's one of the 15 songs or it's a Spurgeon called it a psalter within the psalter. Those songs that were sung by the pilgrims as they went towards Jerusalem for the feast. And how did they go? They went with joy. How should we come to the Lord's feast? We should come with joy. And some of us come with sorrow in our heart. It's not joy instead of sorrow. It's joy in the midst of sorrow. It's joy in the midst of hard providence. It's joy in the midst of all that we're going through in life. Because as the Bible reminds us, it is only the joy of the Lord that is our strength. And that's why the psalmist could say,

[4:11] I joyed when to the house of God go up, they said to me, Jerusalem within thy gates, our feet shall standing be. Jerusalem as a city is compactly built together.

[4:23] And to that place, the tribes go up, the tribes of God go thither. So we'll sing the whole psalm of Psalm 122. And we'll stand to sing, if you're able, to God's praise.

[4:33] I joyed when to the house of God, O what they said to me, Jerusalem within thy gates, our feet shall stand in thee. Jerusalem as a city is, come and lead them together. Come to the place that I saw, the tribes of God

[5:51] Thank you.

[6:21] Thank you.

[6:51] Thank you. Amen.

[7:23] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Well, let us come before the Lord in prayer.

[7:35] Let's pray together. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[7:46] We give thanks this evening for those wonderful words we have just been singing. Remind us of how we are to come to church. And how often, Lord, we come rushing in.

[7:58] And our mind is racing and thinking about other things. But Lord, enable us, we pray this evening, to stop and to come aside. And to rest a while.

[8:09] To rest a while at the feet of Jesus. And to hear his voice speaking to us. Reminding us and reassuring us. That he is our saviour. And that we are his flock.

[8:23] And Lord, we give thanks for what we have been singing there. That I joyed when to the house of God. Go up, they said to me. And we give thanks, Lord, that there is joy in our heart this evening.

[8:36] In gathering together in worship. In singing praise to our great God. And our great King. To seek to worship him in spirit and in truth. To lift up his name.

[8:47] The name that is above every other name. Knowing that it will be at the name of Jesus. That every knee will bow. And every tongue will confess that he is Lord. To the glory of God the Father.

[9:00] And Lord, whatever providence we are going through at present. Whatever trial or tribulation we are facing. Whatever struggle or sorrow that is in our heart. Help us to know that the joy of the Lord.

[9:13] Remains our strength. That whatever weakness we may feel in and of ourselves. Even weakness and vulnerability. And even professing our faith.

[9:24] But Lord, help us to know that we find strength in thee. And in thee alone. The God who gives us strength. The God who promises never to leave us. And never to forsake us.

[9:36] And help us to see this evening that. Even as thy word teaches us. That therefore with joy. Shall you draw water. Out of the wells of salvation. And help us then this evening.

[9:48] To drink and to taste and to see. That thou art good. And to trust in thee and be blessed. To come to this living water. And to be refreshed. To be renewed.

[9:59] To be restored. To be reminded once again. Of this wonderful saviour. Who loved us and gave himself for us. And Lord, we pray that even if we have grown cold.

[10:11] In our Christian faith. Even if we feel distant from the Lord. Even if we feel we are not fit enough. Or good enough. Or worthy enough to come to the Lord's table.

[10:22] Remind us Lord, as one of old said. That feelings come and feelings go. Feelings are deceiving. That my warrant is the word of God. Not else is worth believing.

[10:34] And help us then we pray to trust afresh. In the word that remains true. The word that remains steadfast. The word of the Lord that remains as it teaches us. It remains forever.

[10:46] Help us to come back to it this evening. And to be reminded and reassured. That we do love the Lord. And that we are to do as thy word teaches us. To take the cup.

[10:58] That we are to acknowledge that the Lord is ours. That we are his. That we are to profess our faith. And to confess that I love him. Because he first loved me. Lord, we give thanks to thee for the wonder of salvation.

[11:11] Even the fact that we are here tonight. That we are trophies of grace. And that we are here on a Saturday evening. Desiring to be in church. Wanting to worship with the Lord's people.

[11:24] Because when we look back over our lives. When we look back to our past. Of what we once were when we were strangers to grace and to God. We had no desire to be here.

[11:35] We had no interest in the gospel. We had no thought of eternity. We had no care for our soul. We had no love towards Jesus. And yet we give thanks this evening.

[11:47] That thou art the God who has so worked in our hearts and in our lives. By his spirit. That as we are taught in thy word. That we were convinced of our sin and misery. That thy spirit enlightened our minds in the knowledge of Christ.

[12:01] He renewed our will. And he enabled us and even persuaded us. To embrace Jesus Christ. As he was freely offered to us in the gospel. Oh Lord help us to see what the Lord has done.

[12:14] And what the Lord is still doing. That he has begun that good work in us. And he promises to bring it all to completion. At the day of Jesus Christ. Help us then to trust him.

[12:26] To trust him even in the darkness. Knowing that the darkness. Is still as light unto our God. For thou art a God who is light. And in whom there is no darkness at all.

[12:38] Help us then we pray this evening. To walk even in the light. As thou art in the light. That we would have fellowship with thy son. That we would learn to love him more deeply.

[12:49] To walk with him more closely. To serve him more faithfully. And ultimately to see him. In all his beauty. Lord bless us we pray we ask.

[12:59] Remember those who are unable to be with us this evening. Those Lord who are confined to their homes. Those who are maybe watching online. Whose heart's desire is to be here.

[13:10] Whose longing and love is the Lord's house. That how often they sang those words. That they joyed going to God's house. And yet for them providence has it.

[13:21] That they are at home tonight. Be gracious to them who they are. That they would know the peace of God. That passes all understanding. That they would know grace to be sufficient. And strength made perfect.

[13:33] Even in their weakness. And so Lord we ask that thou wouldst bless us here this evening. Bless thy servant over this congregation. We thank thee for him. Uphold him and support him.

[13:44] Strengthen him in the work of the Lord. That he would know that his labour is not in vain in the Lord. And we pray for the congregation here. Even as we see them going about.

[13:54] And reaching out to their community. Even the Back to Church Sunday Lord. We pray for it. We pray that thou wouldst give to us as thy people. A boldness to invite.

[14:05] To call and to entreat. People to come. And to hear. And that their soul might live. But Lord we pray also for the youth fellowship that we met this afternoon. And we pray for them.

[14:16] For these young lives. And we ask Lord that even in their youth. That they would come and see Jesus. That they would come and follow him. That they would give the best years of their life.

[14:27] To following this wonderful saviour. And Lord we pray for our covenant children. Because we know that these promises. These promises that are in thy word. That they are to us and to our children.

[14:40] And so Lord our prayer is for them. As it has been from the moment they were born. Lord our longing is that they too. Would come to know this wonderful saviour. That they would follow him.

[14:52] That they would confess him. That they would live their lives for him. And Lord protect them we pray. Because we know that there are many voices and many vices. That call out for their soul.

[15:03] But our longing is Lord. That they would hear the voice of the good shepherd. As we heard him. That they would hear what Jesus has to say. Because to his folk he speaks peace.

[15:14] And Lord we give thanks that the shepherd speaks to us. And that he says to us that my sheep hear my voice. And I know them and they follow me. And I give to them eternal life.

[15:26] And they will never perish. Neither shall they be plucked out of my hand. Help us Lord we pray. To keep praying for one another. But ultimately to be assured.

[15:38] That our salvation is secure. In the hands of this good shepherd. The good shepherd who laid down his life for the sheep. The good shepherd who loved his sheep. And who protects his sheep.

[15:50] And who walks with his sheep. And who watches over his sheep day by day. Help us to see that we are the flock of God. That we are his flock. And the sheep of his pasture.

[16:01] Lord keep us then we pray. Watch over us we ask. Bless thy truth to us this evening as we open it. As we study it together. And Lord our prayer is that in it we would see more of Jesus.

[16:13] That he would increase. That we would decrease. That we might behold his glory. The glory is of the only begotten of the Father. Full of grace and truth.

[16:25] Oh Lord we give thanks. That thou hast opened our eyes. But Lord we pray that as we come to thy truth. We might have the prayer of the psalmist. Where he said open thou mine eyes.

[16:36] That I might behold wondrous things. Out of thy law. So Lord teach us then we pray. Bless us we ask. And prepare us for thy day tomorrow. If we are spared to see it.

[16:47] The great privilege it is for us as thy people. To sit at the Lord's table. And we know we are not worthy. We know we have done nothing to earn it. We know Lord that.

[16:59] Oh there is nothing good in us. For as thy word teaches us. That from the sole of our foot. To the crown of our head. There is no soundness in us. But Lord we look not to ourselves.

[17:12] But to Christ Jesus as our Lord. We look to the one who has prepared the table for us. We look to the one who is the head of the table. And we pray that in preparing ourselves to come to this table.

[17:26] We would see him more and more. We would see him and love him. And want to follow him more. We confess oh Lord how much time we waste.

[17:36] How often we procrastinate. Doing the things we shouldn't do. And not doing the things we should. But Lord we pray that even this communion season.

[17:47] Would be a means of renewing us. Would be a means of reminding us of what is important. That we are to seek first the kingdom of God. And his righteousness.

[17:58] Knowing then that all other things. Will be added unto us. So Lord remember us then we pray. Bless those who lead us in the singing. We thank thee oh Lord that thou hast given us.

[18:08] Even voices to sing. That we might show our worth. How worthy the Lord is of our praise. That we might lift our voices in praise and adoration.

[18:19] And sing that worthy is the lamb. Who was slain. Cleanse us then we pray. Take away our iniquities. Receive us graciously for Jesus sake. Amen. We're going to sing again.

[18:33] This time in Psalm 116. The psalm we're looking at this evening. Psalm 116. We're singing from the beginning. It's on the Scottish Psalter. Page 395.

[18:46] We're singing from the beginning down to the verse marked 6. Psalm 116. Psalm 116. And as you know it is the confession of the Christian.

[19:07] Where the Christian says. I love the Lord because my voice and prayers he did hear. I while I live will call on him. Who bowed to me his ear.

[19:18] Of death the cords and sorrows did. About me compass round. The pains of hell took hold on me. I grief and trouble found. Upon the name of God the Lord.

[19:29] Then did I call and say. Deliver thou my soul O Lord. I do thee humbly pray. I'm going to sing on down to the verse marked 6. Of Psalm 116.

[19:40] And we'll stand to sing if you're able. To God's praise. Amen. Amen. I love the Lord. May cross my voice.

[19:53] And may urge me dear. I while I live will call on him.

[20:08] Look unto thee. Look unto thee this year. O death the cords and sorrows did.

[20:23] Have I take help as round. The pins of hell took hold on me.

[20:38] I leave that trouble found.oses empez, glorinated try Levine, Especially with other questions of such else on earth.

[21:07] O Lord, I do Thee humbly pay. O mercy, full and righteousness, In which justice is our Lord, O Lord, since the King I was brought to you, He did me help before.

[21:52] I'm now going to read the Word of God, as we find it first of all in the book of Exodus. The book of Exodus and chapter 6. Exodus chapter 6, and then we're going to read Psalm 116.

[22:18] Exodus chapter 6, we're reading from the beginning, and we're reading down to verse 8. Let us hear the Word of God.

[22:32] But the Lord said to Moses, Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh. For with a strong hand he will send them out, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.

[22:45] God spoke to Moses and said to him, I am the Lord. I appeared to Abraham, I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob as God Almighty, but by my name the Lord I did not make myself known to them.

[22:59] I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they live as sojourners. Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the people of Israel, whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant.

[23:15] So therefore, to the people of Israel, I am the Lord. Say therefore to the people of Israel, I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm, and with great acts of judgment.

[23:35] I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.

[23:47] I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am the Lord.

[23:59] And then we're going to read also in the book of Psalms, Psalm 116. The book of Psalms, Psalm 116, we're going to read the whole psalm.

[24:19] I love the Lord because he has heard my voice and my pleas for mercy, because he inclined his ear to me.

[24:31] Therefore, I will call on him as long as I live. The snares of death encompassed me. The pangs of Sheol, or the grave, laid hold on me. I suffer distress and anguish.

[24:43] Then I called on the name of the Lord. O Lord, I pray, deliver my soul. Gracious is the Lord and righteous. Our God is merciful.

[24:54] The Lord preserves the simple. When I was brought low, he saved me. Return, O my soul, to your rest. For the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.

[25:06] For you have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling. I will walk before the Lord in the land of the living. I believed, even when I spoke.

[25:18] I am greatly afflicted. I said in my alarm, all mankind are liars. What shall I render to the Lord? For all his benefits to me.

[25:29] I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord. I will pay my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people. Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.

[25:43] O Lord, I am your servant. I am your servant, the son of your maidservant. You have loosed my bonds. I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of the Lord.

[25:56] I will pay my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people, in the courts of the house of the Lord, in your midst, O Jerusalem. Praise the Lord.

[26:09] And so on, may the Lord bless those readings of his own holy word. But before we come back to Psalm 116, we're going to sing again in Psalm 116.

[26:21] I'm just going to pick up where we left off in the Scottish Psalter, page 396. Psalm 116, page 396.

[26:31] We're picking up at verse 7 down to the verse marked 12. O thou, my soul, do thou return unto thy quiet rest.

[26:42] For largely, lo, the Lord to thee his bounty hath expressed. For my distressed soul from death delivered was by thee. Thou didst my mourning eyes from tears, my feet from falling free.

[26:56] We'll sing on down to the verse marked 12 of Psalm 116. And we'll stand to sing, if you're able, to God's praise. O thou, my soul, do thou return unto thy quiet rest.

[27:19] For our dear, O the Lord, to thee, his bounty hath expressed.

[27:33] For my distressed soul from death delivered was by thee.

[27:49] Thou didst my mourning eyes from tears, my feet from falling free.

[28:04] I am the land of those that will, will walk the Lord before.

[28:19] I did believe, therefore I say, I was a fainted soul.

[28:34] I said when I was in my haste, that all may my haste be.

[28:50] What shall I render to the Lord for all this gift to thee?

[29:05] Well, if we could, this evening, with the Lord's help and the Lord's enabling, if we could turn back to that second portion of Scripture that we read, the book of Psalms and Psalm 116.

[29:27] Psalm 116. As you know already, we're looking at verses 12 to 14. So we'll read there.

[29:38] Psalm 116 at verse 12. Where the psalmist writes, What shall I render to the Lord for all his benefits to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord.

[29:52] I will pay my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people. As you know, for many Christians, Psalm 116 is their favorite psalm.

[30:11] It might be your favorite psalm. And when you read through this psalm, as we did earlier, and as we've just sung through most of it, it's easy to understand why it would be your favorite psalm.

[30:23] Because Psalm 116, it opens with that powerful and even personal confession of faith that I love the Lord because my voice and prayers heeded here, I, while I live, will call on him who bowed to me his ear.

[30:42] And as you know, that's the confession of faith of every Christian. Everyone who loves the Lord is someone who follows the Lord. And you know, I want to say from the outset this evening that that's the qualification for coming to the Lord's table.

[31:00] Because the qualification to come to the Lord's table is not, are you good enough? Or, do you know enough? Or, have you followed the Lord long enough?

[31:14] No, the qualification to come to the Lord's table, as our Bible teaches us, it is simply to believe in your heart that Jesus Christ is your Lord. And you are willing and wanting to confess with your mouth the opening words of this psalm, I love the Lord.

[31:33] That's your qualification. That's your qualification for coming to the Lord's table tomorrow. And you know, my friend, if that describes you, then you come.

[31:47] You come. Because even though Psalm 116 is the personal testimony of every Christian, it's the personal testimony that must also be made public.

[31:58] Which is why the psalmist says here in verse 12, he says there, what shall I render to the Lord for all his benefits to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord.

[32:09] I will pay my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people. So Psalm 116, it calls us right here to profess our personal love for the Lord by publicly sitting at his table and partaking of the Lord's Supper.

[32:29] But this evening, I'd like us to think about this cup, the cup of salvation mentioned there in verse 13. Because prior to Jesus instituting the Lord's Supper for the first time, the cup of salvation, it was actually one of four cups that were used during the Passover.

[32:49] Passover. And that's what I want you to imagine this evening. I want you to imagine in front of you that there's a table. I wish I could actually do this. There's a table here and there are four cups.

[33:02] There are four cups on this table. And each cup had a name. And each cup represents God's work of salvation in the life of the believer.

[33:16] And what I want us to see this evening is that all these four cups at the Passover, these four cups that were used at the Passover, they all point us to the one Christ.

[33:28] So I want us to think about this evening four cups, one Christ. Four cups, one Christ. And so when the Passover meal would take place, the first cup that was used during the Passover was this cup, the cup of sanctification.

[33:46] the cup of sanctification. That's the first cup we're going to look at this evening, the cup of sanctification. Now, as a psalm, Psalm 116, it's actually a hymn.

[33:59] Because as you know, the book of Psalms, it's a book of Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. The only reason it's called the book of Psalms is simply because there are more psalms in it than hymns or spiritual songs.

[34:10] And so Psalm 116, it's a hymn. And it's part of a group of six hymns. They're called the Egyptian Hallel hymns. The Egyptian Hallel hymns.

[34:22] And they are the items of praise that are numbered here in the book of Psalms from Psalm 113, so 113, 114, 15, 16, 17, and 18.

[34:32] So Psalms numbered 113 to 118, they're part of this group called the Egyptian Hallel hymns. And we know that these particular items of praise are hymns because both Mark and Matthew, they both tell us in their gospel that after Jesus had instituted the Lord's Supper for the first time, we're told there that Jesus and his disciples, they sang a hymn and then they went out to the Mount of Olives.

[35:00] And the hymn that they sang was the last hymn of these Egyptian Hallel hymns, Psalm 118. It was always the last hymn that was sung at the end of the Passover meal.

[35:11] And it's a hymn of thanksgiving. That's why we traditionally sing Psalm 118 as we come to the Lord's table because it's a hymn of thanksgiving.

[35:23] And the Lord's table, as you know, is a table of thanksgiving. And the Lord's supper is a Eucharist. It's a meal of thanksgiving. And so these six Egyptian Hallel hymns numbered 113 to 118 in the Psalter, they were originally sung during the Passover meal.

[35:44] And of course they're called Hallel hymns from the word Hallelujah. Praise the Lord. They're Psalms that praise the Lord for the Exodus at Egypt.

[35:57] They praise the Lord for rescuing and redeeming the Israelites from slavery and bondage in Egypt. That's why they are the Egyptian Hallel hymns.

[36:07] They point us back to the Exodus at Egypt. And you know, every Christian, we tonight, we are to sing these hymns because we're to give our Hallelujah to the Lord.

[36:19] We are to give our Hallelujah to the Lord. Let no one tell you that we never sing Hallelujah in church. We give our Hallelujah to the Lord. We praise the Lord because we have been rescued and redeemed from the burden and bondage of slavery to sin.

[36:38] Now, as we said, on this table, there are four cups. Four cups that were used during the Passover meal. And these four cups, they were all filled with wine.

[36:49] And these four cups, as we said, they all point us to the one Christ. Four cups, one Christ. And each cup is associated with the blessings and benefits that the Israelites received at the Exodus from Egypt.

[37:02] In fact, these four cups, they were all given their name because of four promises that the Lord made to his people. There are four promises that we read there in Exodus chapter 6.

[37:16] Four I will promises. Because the Lord said to Moses there in Exodus chapter 6, he said, Say to the people of Israel, I am the Lord.

[37:28] I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. I will deliver you from slavery to them and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and great acts of judgment.

[37:40] I will take you to be my people and I will be your God and you shall know that I am the Lord. Again and again, the Lord says to his people, I will do it.

[37:53] I will save you. I will redeem you. I will bring you out. Not Moses. He's my servant. I'm going to do it. And based upon that I will passage, there were four promises from the Lord.

[38:07] Four I will promises. I will bring you out. I will deliver you. I will redeem you. I will be your God. And those four promises, they were the basis for these four, the names of these four cups that were used during the Passover meal.

[38:24] So the first cup is the cup of sanctification. Then there's the cup of deliverance. Then there's the cup of salvation. And lastly, there's the cup of praise. And these four cups, as we said, they were filled with wine and they were drunk during the Passover meal.

[38:41] These four cups, they point us ultimately to Christ. Four cups, one Christ. And so when the Passover meal was prepared, there were many elements that would have been on the table among these cups.

[38:53] There would have been the four cups, but there would also have been, as you know, there would have been the Passover lamb. Which at the Exodus, you know the story of the Exodus, the Passover lamb was prepared by shedding and smearing the blood of the Passover lamb on the lintel and the doorposts of their home so that everyone in Israel was sheltering under the blood of the Passover lamb.

[39:18] And then the Passover lamb was roasted in fire to give this vivid and visual pointer towards the Passover lamb. Our Passover lamb. Our Jesus.

[39:29] Who would take away the sin of the world. Another element that would be on the table would be the bitter herbs or the maror. That's what it was called. And the bitter herbs, they were this symbolic reminder of the bitter slavery.

[39:44] This burdensome labor that the Israelites experienced and endured while they were in Egypt under Pharaoh. And then there's this other element that was on the table.

[39:54] The unleavened bread or the matzah. It would have looked like flatbread. It was made from flour and water without any yeast. And the separation of the yeast from the dough was a symbol of separation.

[40:10] A symbol of separation from slavery and sin. It was a symbol of the Lord's people being set apart, being separated and sanctified to the Lord.

[40:23] And that's the idea. The idea of being separated and set apart and sanctified to the Lord, that's what connects us to the first cup. The cup of sanctification. Because as you would have been sitting around the Passover table, it would begin by first of all singing.

[40:42] You would sing the first Egyptian Hallel hymn, Psalm 113. A hymn that begins and ends with the word Hallelujah. Praise the Lord.

[40:53] The hymn writer says there in verse 1, Praise the Lord. Praise, O servants of the Lord. Praise the name of the Lord. Blessed be the name of the Lord from this time forth and forevermore. From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the Lord is to be praised.

[41:09] Praise the Lord. And then after singing the first Egyptian Hallel hymn, the cup of sanctification would be taken and it would be shared among all those who were participating in the meal.

[41:23] And as we said, the cup of sanctification was based upon the Lord's promise, I will bring you out. I will call you out. Because the Lord promised his people, he promised his people is that what he said was that he will bring them out of the empire of slavery in Egypt and he will bring them into the promised land of freedom.

[41:43] I will bring you out. I will call you out. I will separate you. I will set you apart. I will sanctify you. And you know, although we can't take the cup of sanctification at communion, is that not what the Lord has done for us in salvation?

[42:04] He has brought us out. He has called us out. He has separated us from the world. He has sanctified us to himself.

[42:16] He has set us apart as his saints. We don't feel like saints, but that's what the Bible describes us as. We are his saints. Paul reminds us that we have been brought out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of his dear son.

[42:33] And Peter tells us in his letter, he says that we were once not a people, but we are now the people of God. We are those who had once not obtained mercy, but now we have obtained mercy because we have been called out of darkness and we've been brought into his marvelous light.

[42:53] We've been separated from the world. We've been set apart by the Spirit and we have been sanctified to the Lord. You know, it's a wonderful cup to remind us of what we are in Christ.

[43:07] It's the cup of sanctification. The cup of sanctification. But then as we move along the table, we see the second cup, the cup of deliverance.

[43:18] So that's the second cup, the cup of deliverance. So after sharing the first cup, the cup of sanctification, after passing it around the table, they would then sing another Hallel hymn.

[43:29] And the Hallel hymn that they would sing is, of course, the next one, Psalm 114, which is a hymn that begins with the words when you see there in verse 1, it says, when Israel went out from Egypt.

[43:43] When Israel went out from Egypt. So it's a hymn all about God's wonders and God's works at the Exodus. And then having sung Psalm 114, the second cup, the cup of deliverance, that would be shared among those who were sitting and participating in the meal.

[44:02] And again, it was given the name because of the Lord's promises. The Lord's promises there in Exodus 6 where the Lord said, I will deliver you. I will deliver you.

[44:13] But what's interesting about this cup, the second cup, is that as this cup was passed around the table, the Passover table, as it was being shared at the Passover, the story of the Passover would be told.

[44:28] The story of the Exodus would be explained. They would be reminded of how the Israelites were in slavery in Egypt and how they were there under the ferocious and formidable Pharaoh and how the Lord sent plagues, those ten plagues to display and demonstrate his great power and how the Lord kept proclaiming to Pharaoh, saying, thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel, let my people go.

[44:56] Let my people go. But as you know, Pharaoh, he hardened his heart. He stubbornly refused and rejected the Lord's command. But that was until the final plague of Passover when the angel of the Lord passed over Egypt and every firstborn son from the playground all the way to the palace, they all died in Egypt.

[45:20] The only reason the Israelites' sons didn't die was because of the sign of the Passover. The Israelites, as you know, they were sheltering under the smeared blood of the Passover lamb.

[45:33] And the Lord had said to them, the Lord had promised to them, when I see the blood, I will pass over. When I see the blood, I will pass over.

[45:47] Beautiful reminder to us, to us, is it not, of what the Lord sees when he looks at us. not our sin, but the blood, washed and cleansed in the blood.

[46:02] You know, the sign of the Passover, though, even for the Israelites, it was a public proclamation. Putting that blood on their lintel and their doorposts was a public proclamation.

[46:15] Having that blood covering them was a public proclamation, which is what we're doing this communion season. We are making a public proclamation that we too are sheltering under the shed and smeared blood of Jesus Christ.

[46:32] We too are proclaiming publicly that there is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel's veins and sinners plunged beneath our flood lose all their guilty stains.

[46:46] We are proclaiming this Lord's day that we have been delivered, my friend, not with the corruptible things of silver and gold, but by the precious blood of Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.

[47:02] And so after sharing the cup of deliverance and after hearing the story of the Exodus, the Passover meal would then be eaten. They would then enjoy the Passover meal with the Passover lamb and the bitter herbs and the unleavened bread, which brings us to consider the third cup, this cup, the cup of salvation.

[47:24] The cup of salvation. So there's, on this table, our imaginary table, there is the cup of sanctification, the cup of deliverance, and then the cup of salvation.

[47:37] The cup of salvation. That's what he talks about in verse 13. I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord.

[47:49] The cup of salvation was given its name again because of the Lord's promise. The Lord's promise there back in Exodus chapter 6, the Lord said, I will redeem you.

[48:00] I will save you. I will give you salvation. I will bring salvation. The cup of salvation was given its name because of the Lord's promise of salvation.

[48:13] And the cup of salvation, it's mentioned here at the close of Psalm 116 because after eating and enjoying the Passover meal, after sharing in this Passover meal, they would then sing some more.

[48:26] They would sing the next two Egyptian Hallel hymns. They would sing Psalm 115 and Psalm 116, which as you know, and I'm sure you've read them before, they're hymns which confess our faith and our commitment to the Lord.

[48:41] They're hymns which confess our faith and our commitment to the Lord. Psalm 115, it begins with this confession of faith and commitment to the Lord.

[48:53] That our life song in this world, it's not unto us, Lord, not to us, but do thou glory take unto thy naming for thy truth and for thy mercy's sake.

[49:05] And Psalm 116, it also begins with this confession of faith and commitment to the Lord with those wonderful words, I love the Lord because my voice and prayers he did hear.

[49:17] I, while I live, will call on him who bowed to me his ear. But you know, Psalm 116, it has this confession of faith and this commitment to the Lord.

[49:28] And he confesses his faith and his commitment to the Lord because as he says throughout the Psalm, the Lord has listened to his longings. The Lord has delivered him from death. The Lord has saved his soul.

[49:41] Therefore, in response to the Lord's redemption, in response to the Lord's salvation, he asks the question there in verse 12, what shall I render to the Lord for all his benefits to me?

[49:53] What shall I render to the Lord for all his blessings towards me? What shall I render to the Lord for receiving every spiritual blessing in heavenly places in Christ?

[50:05] What shall I render to the Lord for receiving from the hand of King Jesus what I do not deserve? And we are to respond, verse 13, we are to respond by obediently and publicly making this confession and commitment to the Lord.

[50:24] I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord. I will pay my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people.

[50:36] We are to respond by obediently and publicly making a confession and commitment to the Lord. Now when it comes to Jesus instituting the Lord's Supper for the first time, some suggest that it was this cup, the cup of salvation that Jesus took.

[51:00] But there are many, I've read many, differing and diverging views on this. And what often adds to the confusion when you read up on this is that they all use different names for these different cups.

[51:12] And it takes a while to decipher which cup they're actually talking about. There was one professor in the Free Church College a long time ago, R.A. Finlayson. He was a professor of systematic theology from the 1940s to the 1960s.

[51:28] And he wrote a brilliant book. Maybe you've read it. If you don't have it, I suggest you go to the religious bookshop and get it. It's called The Cross in the Experience of Our Lord.

[51:39] The Cross in the Experience of Our Lord. And R.A. Finlayson, he says that Jesus used the fourth cup to institute the Lord's Supper, which was the cup of praise.

[51:50] He didn't use, as he suggests, the cup of salvation. But the fourth cup, the cup of praise. That's the cup I want us to consider next then. So there's four cups, the cup of sanctification, the cup of deliverance, the cup of salvation, and the cup of praise.

[52:08] Four cups pointing us to one Christ. One Christ. So the last cup is the cup of praise. And like the other three, the fourth cup, it's given its name because of the Lord's promise.

[52:20] The Lord has promised His people. He's a covenant-making God and a covenant-keeping God. He makes promises and He keeps His promise. And He says to His people about this cup, I will be your God and you shall be my people.

[52:36] I will be your God and you shall be my people. But the cup of praise, it wasn't shared among the Passover meal until another Egyptian Hallel hymn was sung.

[52:50] This time it was the shortest one. As you see there in Psalm 117. It's the Hallel hymn that exhorts us and encourages the nations of the world to also give their hallelujah to the Lord.

[53:02] We're all to praise the Lord, he says. We're all to praise the Lord for His steadfast love and faithfulness because His love endures forever. But what's remarkable is that this short Hallel hymn praises the Lord and proclaims His promise.

[53:19] The promise that was given way back in Genesis 12 to Abraham. The promise that through the seed of Abraham all the nations, all the families of the earth would be blessed.

[53:34] All the nations and all the families would come to know this great and precious promise. And they're blessed says the psalmist he reminds us because the Lord promised His people I will be your God and you will be my people.

[53:50] There's ownership. We belong to Him. We've been redeemed by Him. I will be your God you will be my people. And so after singing Psalm 117 the cup of praise was then shared among those sitting.

[54:08] at the Passover meal. And it was shared before they would come to sing the final hymn of thanksgiving. Psalm 118. However, Ari Finlayson the professor in the Free Church College in the 1940s he named the fourth cup not the cup of praise but the cup of the Messiah.

[54:27] Because Ari Finlayson he claimed that when this cup was shared no one was to drink it until the Messiah would appear and drink it himself.

[54:39] And Ari Finlayson said it was at this point during the Passover meal with the fourth cup the cup of praise or the cup of Messiah whatever name you want to give it it's here that Jesus the Passover lamb put the Passover meal to one side as it were indicating the end of the Passover the end of the period of the Passover and then institutes the Lord's Supper for the first time.

[55:04] Now as I said there's many different and many diverging views on this and I think it's fascinating and that's why I want to share it with you this evening because even rabbis they disagree they debate about all of this this table and these four cups and the question that they all debate on is should there be four cups or five should there be four cups or five and you're thinking Myrtle surely not another cup but you know the reason they debate and they disagree about the answer to this question is because to this day Jews when they sit and partake of the Passover meal the Jews they drink from all four cups they drink from the cup of sanctification and the cup of deliverance and the cup of salvation and the cup of praise and because the Jews drink from all four cups some suggest that there was a fifth cup a fifth cup that like

[56:08] Ari Finlayson said it remained untouched and this fifth cup was called and still is called the cup of Elijah the cup of Elijah now it seems that the cup of Elijah was actually added later on at a later period and it was added later on towards the end of the period of the Old Testament and it was added on primarily because of a promise another promise in the closing words of the book of Malachi the last book in the Old Testament the Lord says behold I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes and so it seems that after Malachi's prophecy which was about 400 BC that whenever the Passover was celebrated after that point the Jews would fill a fifth cup the cup of Elijah and before concluding the Passover meal the Jews they would before they would sing the hymn of Thanksgiving the hymn the Psalm 118 they would go to the door the door of their home wherever they were celebrating the Passover and they would open the door of their home and they would open the door in anticipation for Elijah's arrival because they were waiting for Elijah to herald the arrival of the Messiah and of course the Jews they're still waiting for Elijah to appear but this also means that there were five cups at the Passover when Jesus instituted the Lord's Supper and for this reason

[57:53] I believe that I was using the fifth cup the cup of Elijah that as Paul tells us on the night when Jesus was betrayed he took some of the leftover bread on the table the unleavened bread and when he had given thanks he broke it and he said this is my body which is broken for you do this in remembrance of me and then in the same way also he took the cup the cup of Elijah the cup of Elijah because Elijah had come we're told that when John the Baptist appeared he preached a baptism of repentance in the spirit and power of Elijah Elijah had come the promise had been fulfilled and John the Baptist had claimed and pointed to Jesus saying he must increase I must decrease John the Baptist confessed that he is the Lamb of God who has come to take away the sin of the world everyone knew

[58:59] Elijah had come and so when Jesus instituted the Lord's Supper he took the cup of Elijah and he said this cup this cup is the new covenant in my blood do this as often as you drink it in remembrance of me and why are we to do it my friend why on this communion season are we to do it Paul tells us for as often as you eat the bread and you drink the cup you make a proclamation and what are you proclaiming you are proclaiming the Lord's death until he comes you are proclaiming that you worship and serve a saviour who died in your place and rose triumphant over the grave and God willing that's what we'll be doing tomorrow morning we will eat the bread we will drink the cup we will proclaim the promise the promise that we have eternal life and we have eternal life through nothing we have achieved in and of ourselves we have eternal life through the death and resurrection of our Passover

[60:23] Lamb the Lord Jesus Christ and my friend if you've never come to this table if you've never been at the Lord's table you're invited to come you're invited to confess that you love the Lord you're invited to commit to him by partaking of his supper because he bids us to come to come and sup with him so four cups or five cups however many cups there remains only one Christ and that's who we look to the one Christ may the Lord bless these thoughts to us let us pray oh Lord our gracious God we give thanks that wherever we open the Bible we find Jesus on every page and that he is there to be found all his promises are there for us to be claimed and confessed his word is there to be lived and loved and Lord help us we pray to do so to do so as thy people to be obedient to the call of thy word to come and take the cup and confess that the Lord is one who loved me and gave himself for me that we would all be able to say with the apostle that I am crucified with Christ nevertheless

[62:03] I live yet not I but Christ lives in me and the life that I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the son of God who loved me and gave himself for me so Lord bless us we pray we ask and oh Lord we pray that thou wouldst prepare us for thy day if we are spared to see it that we would truly come with joy into the Lord's house knowing that we do not worship a saviour who is dead but one who has risen one who has defeated death who has conquered the grave and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel hear us then we pray go before us we ask for we ask it in Jesus name and for his sake Amen we're going to bring our service to a conclusion this evening we're going to sing the words of Psalm 116 the closing words there in the Scottish

[63:06] Psalter version Psalm 116 page 396 in the blue Psalm book from verse 13 down to the end of the Psalm I love salvation take the cup on God's name will I call I'll pay my vows now to the Lord before his people all and then down to the end of the Psalm within the courts of God's own house within the midst of thee O city of Jerusalem praise to the Lord give ye so we'll sing these verses of Psalm 116 and we'll stand to sing if you're able to God's praise my vows at the!

[63:56] pero praise for it não Victor so he'll dieattle in order to the George I give thy answer to the Lord before his people all.

[64:26] Here in those sight is this instead, thy servant Lord am I.

[64:42] Thy servant's true, thy learned, it's not, my balance thou didst untie.

[64:59] The thought of things I to thee will give, and all God's name will call.

[65:15] I give thy vows back to the Lord before his people all.

[65:32] When the ender meds of thee, O Saintia, Jerusalem, praise to the Lord, dear thee.

[66:07]  The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all, now and forevermore. Amen.