A little bit far away, some of you are nice and close, but that's okay.
You're here, and I'm here, and it is so good to see you.
Some of you I haven't seen physically for a long time,
so it is good to see you in person.
Just to remind you this morning that as we gather, there are toilets.
If you can, if at all possible, just wait until the very end.
Ladies at the far door and men through the double door.
When we leave this morning, we can leave either through the fire exit down there,
or the fire exit down here.
And our encouragement is to just congregate outside the door, just behind that wall.
There's a nice green area outdoors.
We can catch up, we can chat, find out how each other is doing, and encourage one another.
I'm not sure if the coffee guy is there this morning.
There was a coffee seller there last week.
So you can even do him a good turn and buy yourself a cup of coffee and chat with people.
So my encouragement as we begin is to turn to 1 Corinthians chapter 1.
1 Corinthians chapter 1.
So this is just going to be helpful for us as we set our theme and our focus this morning.
So 1 Corinthians chapter 1.
What we're going to do is I'm going to read some verses,
and then we're going to play a song, which the words you will see on the screen,
and the encouragement is just to listen to the song, reflect on the words, and meditate.
We're not going to be singing this morning,
but just to use those words to help us focus our hearts and our minds upon the Lord Jesus.
So 1 Corinthians chapter 1 and verse 26.
So our question this morning as we gather is,
what are you boasting in?
Where's your confidence, and where's your assurance?
Verse 26.
Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called.
So it's saying think about what you were before Christ enabled you
to turn to him in faith and repentance.
Well, not many of you were wise by human standards.
Not many were influential.
Not many were of noble birth.
We were just ordinary, everyday kind of people.
Verse 28.
But God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things and the things that are not
to nullify the things that are so that no one may boast before him.
Verse 31.
Therefore, as it is written,
let the one who boasts,
boast in the Lord.
It's not about us today.
It never is.
It's all about the Lord Jesus Christ,
his death for us,
his resurrection from the grave,
defeating death,
giving us a new life,
a new creation,
and a new eternal destiny in his kingdom.
We gather together today
because the Lord Jesus has enabled us to do so.
And we boast in him that joyful confidence in all that Christ is.
So, we're going to play a song now.
Turn your eyes upon Jesus.
Let's use this song.
Meditate on the words.
Think about it.
Reflect.
As we focus our minds and our hearts to him.
Amen.
Turn your eyes upon Jesus.
Look full in his wonderful face.
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of his glory and grace.
Turn your eyes to the hillside
Where justice and mercy embrace
There the Son of God gave his life for us
And our measureless death was erased
Jesus, our glory and our prize
We adore you, our Savior ever true
Oh, Jesus, we turn our eyes to you
Turn your eyes to the morning
And see Christ the lion away
What a glorious dawn
Fear of death is gone
For we carry his life in our veins
Jesus, our glory and our prize
We adore you, our glory and our prize
We adore you, our Savior ever true
Oh, Jesus, our glory and our prize
Oh, Jesus, we turn our eyes to you
Turn your eyes to the heavens
Our King will return for his own
Every knee will bow
Every tongue will shout
All glory to Jesus
Oh, Jesus, to you we lift our eyes
Jesus, our glory and our prize
We adore you, we hold you
Our Savior ever true
Oh, Jesus, we turn our eyes to you
Oh, Jesus, to you we lift our prize
Jesus, to you we lift our prize
Jesus, we lift our prize
Jesus, our glory and our prize
We adore you, behold you
Our Savior ever true
Oh Jesus, we turn our eyes to you
Let's pray together
Father, as we gather together as your people today
We want to turn away from all pride
From all notions of self
And we look afresh as we have just been reflecting and meditating upon the Lord Jesus
We thank you that because of him
We can come to you as our Father
We can gather together as your people
United together
Through the Lord Jesus Christ
Thank you that in him
Because of his death for us
Our sin is dealt with
All our past
All our guilt and shame
All our concerns for the future
Everything has been paid for and dealt with
Once and for all
There is nothing left for us to do
Except to boast
In the Lord Jesus Christ
To say thank you
For his work on our behalf
Living the perfect life for us
Dying our death for us
Rising again from the grave
Ensuring our eternal destiny is secure
That eternal kingdom
The new heavens and the new earth
Where everything will be put right
Father, we thank you so much
For all that you have done for us
In Christ today
And we ask that as we humbly turn
From ourselves and turn to you
That you would pour out your Holy Spirit
Upon each one of us today
That you would speak to us afresh
Through the words we hear
As we read
As we listen
And as later we reflect
And think upon the Lord's death for us
As we celebrate the Lord's supper
That you would use all of these things
Engage all of our senses
So that we may understand better
Who you are
What you have done
And what it means to follow you
Father, we are grateful
We are thankful
For you today
Thankful for one another
For our brothers and sisters
In Christ
So help us today
We pray for those of our church family
Who can't be with us
Father, encourage them
As they later listen
To the recording of this gathering
That they would be blessed
And they would be built up
And in no sense, Father
Will they feel distant
But be part of your church family today
Father, we pray that you would help us
As a church
To love one another well
In these days
To find good ways
To encourage
And to support
We thank you, Father
For the love
That is shown
We thank you for the way
In which people
Are encouraging
And looking out
For each other
And we pray that this will continue
In greater measure
As we spur one another on
To love
And good deeds
So we thank you
For today
Thank you for your blessings
In Jesus' name
Amen
Well, the children are going to leave
In just a minute
For those who are going to Sunday school
Before you do
What you're going to do is
You're going to just move
To the nearest blue area
And then you're just going to walk
Nice and slowly
Round to the back
And to the door
Where you will go
To Sunday school
But before you go
Just a reminder
At the end
So that the children
Can come out
If the ladies are needing the loo
If you could just hold on
For a minute more
And let the children out
And then you can use the loos
If you need to
And we're going to pray for you now
For the little ones
So let's pray for them
As they go to their class
Let's do that now
Our Father God
We thank you again
For the family
Of your church
For your people
Gathered here today
We pray for the
Little ones amongst us
We know it's been
A hard time
And a difficult
Number of weeks
And months
Missing friends
Missing
Being able to go out
And see people
And play
That's been hard
And so we pray today
That you would encourage them
To see that in you
Father
You are unchanging
You are always
With us
No matter what we may go through
No matter what we feel
In our hearts
Even the things we can't
Explain or understand
You know
And you understand
And you give us
The help
That we need
Because you are
A big
Great
And mighty God
I pray
That you would help
The children
As they go to their class
That they'll listen well
And that they will hear
Great truths
About the Lord Jesus
And that it will encourage them
To fix their eyes
Their minds
And their hearts
Upon him
Today
So bless them
As they go
And bless us
As we
Remain here
In Jesus name
Amen
Okay children
So just to one side
And then
Cherry will be
Helping you out
So as they do that
Let me encourage you please
To turn to Galatians
Chapter 6
In our Bibles
Galatians
Chapter 6
We're going to read
God's word
Before Ralph
Comes and speaks
So Galatians
Chapter 6
Verse 6
To the end of the chapter
So
You've been following online
We've been working
We've been working our way
Through this great letter
To the Galatians
And we come to the end
To a conclusion
And Ralph is going to wrap
Everything up for us
Going to teach us this morning
So we're going to read
And then
Hand over to Ralph
So let's hear
God's word to us
This morning
Galatians 6
Starting
At verse 6
Nevertheless
The one who receives
Instruction in the word
Should share
All good things
With their instructor
Do not be deceived
God cannot be mocked
A man reaps
What he sows
Whoever sows
To please their flesh
From the flesh
Will reap destruction
Whoever sows
To please the spirit
From the spirit
Will reap eternal life
Let us not become weary
In doing good
For at the proper time
We will reap a harvest
If we do not give up
Therefore
As we have opportunity
Let us do good
To all people
Especially
To those who belong
To the family
Of believers
See what large
Letters I use
As I write with you
With my own hand
Those who want
To impress people
By means of the flesh
Are trying to compel you
To be circumcised
The only reason
They do this
Is to avoid
Being persecuted
For the cross of Christ
Not even those
Who are circumcised
Keep the law
Yet they want you
To be circumcised
That they may boast
About your circumcision
In the flesh
May I never
Boast except
In the cross
Of our Lord
Jesus Christ
Through which
The world
Has been crucified
To me
And I
To the world
Neither circumcision
Nor uncircumcision
Means anything
What counts
Is the new creation
Peace
And mercy
To all
Who follow this rule
To the Israel
Of God
From now on
Let no one
Cause me trouble
For I bear on my body
The marks of Jesus
The grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ
Be with your spirit
Brothers and sisters
Amen
Thank you Johnny
It is good to
Be back with you
All this morning
We had a good run
In the book room
At our house
For a few months
Johnny and myself
But it is much better
With all of you
I can tell you that
No offence Johnny
I am just going to
Turn to the book
Of Galatians
Myself here
Galatians chapter 6
And just make sure
The
Nope
Sorry I can't see
What's
I'm going the wrong way
Aren't I
That's right
Isn't it
Yeah
Okay
Thank you
So just as we begin
I'm just going to ask
For the Lord's
Help and the enabling
Of the spirit
This morning
Our heavenly father
We thank you
That we are gathered
Here this morning
As your people
The Israel of God
Those who come
To worship you
Those who love you
Because we have
Been loved by you
We are the
The new creation
And so Lord
We ask for your
Help now
That we would hear
From your word
That your spirit
Would be at work
In our hearts
And father
Give me strength
For the task at hand
Amen
Oops
I'm still going
The wrong way
Aren't I
Okay
A large scale
Public health crisis
Reveals much
About a culture
And a society
We like to imagine
All things about
Ireland
And being Irish
But when pressure
Is applied
To everyone
And to everything
At once
Cracks can begin
To appear
Our now
Former teacher
Leo Varadkar
In one of his
Many speeches
He said
These words
Good words
I believe
We need to
Maintain
Social solidarity
Unity
And a sense
Of community
In this time
Of trial
And on the other
Hand
He was ready
To enact
Draconian laws
To lock us
All down
Stop us
In our cars
Curtail our freedom
To meet people
The call
To solidarity
And community
On one hand
The power
Of the state
And of the law
In the other
And I wonder
Which one does
Leo really think
If either of them
Gets a country
Through a pandemic
Why the need
For both
Solidarity
And the force
Of the law
Why both
Well there's no
Guarantees
Over the long term
About countries
We know that
Kingdoms and countries
Rise and fall
Pandemics
Wars
Upheavals
Natural disasters
Have wiped out
And dismantled
Countless
Empires
Let alone
Thinking about
Little
Little Ireland
Just a hundred
Years old
Communities
And societies
That seem to us
Invincible
Think of the
Soviet Union
Can fall away
Very rapidly
Communities
Can just
Collapse
We find the
Church community
Under the same
External pressures
That our country
Is under
Our society
Our way of life
As the Christian
Community
Goes back
Two thousand
Years
To Jesus
Christ
And even
Further
When we
Consider
The beginning
Of humanity
There has always
Been the people
Of God
Those who
Worship God
Those who
Loved God
Those who
Are called
By God
So the church
God's people
Is an enduring
Community
Surviving
And growing
Over thousands
Of years
So what
Is it
That will
Keep
This
Church
Going
Or what
Is it
That will
Keep
The church
Going
Do we
Need
Leo's
Playbook
The call
For community
In one hand
With the law
Book in the other
And we just
You know
A little
Christian life
Is really
Need a little
Bit from
Like column
A
And a little
Bit from
Column
B
And you
Mix them
Together
And that's
How you
Keep
The community
Going
That's how
You keep
The lights
On
Two paths
Well there
Are indeed
Two paths
For church
Communities
To walk
Two ways
To try and
Keep it all
Together
And we see
That in this
Passage
Paul has
Pleaded
At each
Step
Through this
Letter to the
Galatians
That we
Follow the
Means of
Grace
Follow the
Means of
Grace to
Keep the
Church
Community
To keep
Us on
The path
To keep
Us on
The journey
Follow the
Means of
Grace
Which he
Calls in
Some places
The means
Of the
Spirit
Or the
Way of
The
Spirit
Or living
By the
Spirit
The same
Thing
Grace and
Spirit go
Together
From start
To finish
The other
Path
Is the
Means of
Law
Keeping
To impress
Others
Which is the
Same as the
Means of
The flesh
So law
Keeping to
Impress
Others
And the
Flesh
Or we
Have the
Means of
Grace
Which is
The means
Of the
Spirit
And life
By the
Spirit
And Paul
Talks in
This section
About sowing
And reaping
To make the
Differences
Really clear
For us
So let's
Look again
At the
Passage
In verse
Seven
Do not
Be deceived
God
Cannot
Be
Mocked
A man
Reaps
What he
Sows
Whoever
Sows
To please
Their
Flesh
From the
Flesh
Will reap
Destruction
Whoever
Sows
To please
The
Spirit
From the
Spirit
Will reap
Eternal
Life
Two
Ways
To live
Two
Ways
To sow
And two
Ways
To reap
We all
Have fundamental
Commitments
In our
Lives
And those
Fundamental
Commitments
Are either
Paul says
Ultimately
To the
Flesh
Or
Ultimately
To the
Spirit
What we
Sow
To
Is what
We will
Reap
From
And as
The church
Community
As the
Church
Our
Commitment
Must be
To grace
And to
The Spirit
On our
Journey
Together
Look back
As I said
This is all
Through the
Book
And as we
Finish Galatians
It's good to
See that
Thread that
Runs all
Through
If you
Turn back
With me
To chapter
Three
And verse
Three
Galatians
Chapter
Three
And verse
Three
Paul
Speaking to
The church
And maybe
Rightly
Frustrated
He says
Are you
So foolish
After
Beginning by
Means of
The Spirit
Are you
Now trying
To finish
By means
Of the
Flesh
You've
Started
With the
Spirit
And now
You're
Trying to
Finish
With the
Flesh
Or turn
Over
The page
To chapter
Five
And verse
Seven
This is how he
Describes what
Was happening
You were running
A good race
You were running
A good race
Who cut in
To keep you
From obeying
The truth
Verse
16
In the
Same
Chapter
Five
So
I
Say
Live
By
The
Spirit
Live
By
The
Spirit
And you
Will not
Gratify
The
Desires
Of
The
Flesh
And again
We come
To chapter
Six
And verses
Seven
And eight
Do not
Be deceived
God
Cannot
Be
Mocked
A man
Reaps
What he
Sows
Whoever
Sows
To
Please
Their
Flesh
From
The
Flesh
Will
Reap
Destruction
Whoever
Sows
To
Please
The
Spirit
From
The
Spirit
Will
Reap
Eternal
Life
Do not
Be deceived
God
Cannot
Be
Mocked
We
Are
All
Investing
All
The
Time
We
Are
All
Sowing
All
The
Time
And we
Sow
Somewhere
What we
Do
With
Our
Time
We're
Sowing
That
Somewhere
We
Plant
Our
Hours
And our
Days
As we
Walk
Through
This
Life
Into
What
We
Value
From
Cradle
To
The
Grave
We're
Making
Those
Decisions
All
The
Time
With
Our
Time
We're
Sowing
It
Somewhere
And we're
Sowing
Our
Money
And our
Finances
And our
Gifts
To
Something
We're
Buying
Things
That
Please
Us
We
Are
Sowing
And we
Are
Reaping
We
Are
Sowing
And we
Are
Reaping
We
Are
Sowing
And we
Are
Reaping
To
Something
Or
Somewhere
To
Either
The
Flesh
Or
To
The
Spirit
To
Either
Self
Or
Christ
Listen
Again
To
The
Two
Paths
Whoever
Sows
To
Please
Their
Flesh
From
The
Flesh
Will
Reap
Destruction
Whoever
Sows
To
Please
The
Spirit
From
The
Spirit
Will
Reap
Eternal
Life
And so
When the
Pressure
Comes
On
As it
Has
Done
In
These
Past
Months
We
Are
Revealing
Our
Heart
Commitments
To
God
And we're
Revealing
Them
To
One
Another
In
This
Community
And we
Are
Revealing
Them
To
A
Watching
World
And
God
Cannot
Be
Mocked
There's
A
There's
A
Givenness
That's
What
That
Means
There's
A
Givenness
To
The
Way
God's
World
Works
Even
With
All
Of
The
Sin
And
Anti
God
Things
There's
Still
A
Givenness
To
How
The
World
Works
Because
As
You
Sow
You
Will
Reap
There
Is
A
Cause
And
An
Effect
Element
Or
Sowing
And
A
Reaping
Will
Show
Us
Where
Our
Hearts
Lie
And
The
Path
That
We
Are
On
Firstly
The
Path
Of
The
Flesh
Says
Whoever
Sows
To
Please
Their
Flesh
From
The
Flesh
Will
Reap
Destruction
Now
The
Word
Flesh
Is
A
Very
Flexible
Word
In
The
Bible
I
Don't
Know
How
Many
Times
You
Come
Across
And
You're
Like
What
Does
It
Mean
Here
Well
Just
Explain
Flesh
Can
Literally
Mean
Skin
And
Bones
You know
Just
The
Literally
As
We
Think
Of
The
Flesh
The
Flesh
The
Body
It's
Also
Sometimes
Used
As
A
Way
Of
Saying
That
Someone
Is
A
Human
Being
They're
Of
The
Flesh
The
Flesh
Of
Adam
They're
A
Human
It
Can
Also
Be
Used
To
Refer
To
The
Part
Of
Us
As
Christians
That
Is
Prone
To
Still
Sin
So
We
Can
Talk
About
Battling
The
Flesh
As
A
Believer
And
So
We
Need
To
Look
Very
What
It
Means
And
Here
I
Think
It's
Primarily
It's
Being
Used
In
Another
Way
I
Think
The
Best
Way
To
Understand
Flesh
Here
Is
An
Individual
Settled
Opposition
To
The
Way
Of
Christ
As
They
Live
For
Themselves
An
Individual
Settled
Opposition
To
The
Way
Of
Christ
As
They
Live
For
Themselves
Because
Paul
Is
Drawing
A
Very
Strong
Distinction
Isn't
He
Between
Sowing
To
The
Flesh
And
Reaping
Eternal
Life
It's
Flesh
Versus
Spirit
Is
Really
Self
Versus
God
And
Paul
Spells
Out
What
Flesh
Living
Looks
Like
In
The
Church
In
Verse
12
And
13
Those
Who
Want
To
Impress
People
By
Means
Of
The
Flesh
Are
Trying
To
Compel
You
To
Be
Circumcised
The
Only
Reason
They
Do
This
Is
To
Avoid
Being
Persecuted
For
The
Cross
Of
Christ
Not
Even
Those
Who
Are
Circumcised
Keep
The
Law
Yet
They
Want
You
To
Be
Circumcised
That
They
May
Boast
About
Your
Circumcision
In
The
Flesh
The
Path
The
Path
Of
Impressing
Others
People
Are
Big
And
God
Is
Quite
Small
On
The
Path
Of
The
Flesh
What
Others
Think
Is
Our
First
Thought
At
Any
Sign
Of
Controversy
Or
Pressure
Verse
12
We
See
That
In
The
Church
In
Galatia
What
This
Looked
Like
Because
You
Could
Impress
Others
By
Compelling
People
To
Be
Circumcised
Joe
Over
There
Never
Been
Circumcised
Calls
Himself
A
Christian
Comes
Every
Sunday
But
He's
Never
Had
The
Snip
I'm
Not
Impressed
With
Joe
Really
Doesn't
Seem
To
Live
For
Jesus
Completely
Avoids
The
Topic
Of
Circumcision
When
He
Comes
Up
Not
Even
We
Each
Have
Things
That
We
Insist
On
We
Each
Have
Things
That
We
Insist
On
Sheila
Doesn't
Give
10%
Of
Her
Income
To
The
Church
Little
Birdy
Told
Me
It's
In
It's
In
The
Bible
Can't
Believe
She's
Not
Doing
It
I
Mean
What
She
Playing
At
The
Rest
Of
Us
Have
To
Carry
The
Burden
It's
A
Disgrace
If
I'm
Honest
Quite
Selfish
Really
Brings
Our
Whole
Church
Down
And
I
Can't
Even
Be
Convinced
Or
Sure
That
She's
A
Christian
When
She
Doesn't
Do
That
I'm
Going
To
Have
To
Bring
It
Up
So
That
We
Can
Bring
Her
In
Line
With
Church
Practice
Outside
Pressure
Can
Come
On
Churches
To
Conform
To
Avoid
Persecution
And
Improve
Our
Standing
With
The
World
And
The
Community
Outside
We
Shift
Whole
Churches
And
Denominations
Can
Compromise
On
The
Bible's
Teaching
Julie
Still
Thinks
Women
Shouldn't
Have
The
Right
To
Choose
Well
I'm
Glad
Our
Church
Came
Out
In
Support
Of
The
Abortion
Referendum
If
Jesus
Was
Here
Today
He'd
Campaign
For
It
He'd
Campaign
For
The
Very
Same
Very
Sad
That
Julie
Is
Arguing
On
This
Doesn't
She
Know
That
Churches
Change
Over
Time
We
Gave
Up
Slavery
Nobody
Argus
On
That
Anymore
We've
Caught
Up
On
This
Whole
Women's
Rights
Thing
Finally
But
Not
Julie
Still
Insists
That
Abortion
Is
Wrong
And
Both
These
Examples
Of
Insisting
On
Say
An
Internal
Matter
Like
Tithing
Within
The
Church
Or
Insisting
That
We
Move
Our
Views
And
Say
That
Killing
The
Unborn
Is
Right
They're
Both
Ultimately
A
Form
Of
People
Pleasing
Whether
It's
Inside
Or
Outside
The
Church
People
Are
Big
In
Our
View
What
They
Think
Ultimately
Matters
But
As
It
Says
Here
Verse
Thirteen
It's
A
Fool's
Errand
To
Chase
Popular
Opinion
Like
This
Not
Even
Those
Who
Are
Circumcised
Keep
The
Law
If
They
Want
You
To
Be
Circumcised
That
They
May
Boast
About
Your
Circumcision
In
The
Flesh
People
Pleasing
Becomes
Hypocrisy
Whether
That's
The
Internal
Church
Law
Keeping
Or
Conformity
To
The
World
There's
No
End
To
Either
On
This
Path
Of
The
Flesh
Because
We
Will
Inevitably
Fail
To
Keep
Somebody's
Rules
And
There's
No
Grace
There is
No
Grace
With
There is
Only
People
Pleasing
And
Law
Keeping
There is
No
Grace
To be
Found
When
You
Finally
Fail
What
Do
You
Seek
To
Enforce
This
Is
This
Is
Speaking
To
Me
What
Is
It
That
You
Seek
To
Enforce
On
Others
In
The
Church
This
Past
Week
Talking
About
Your
Brother
Or
Your
Sister
Your
Christian
Brother
Or
Sister
In
The
Privacy
Of
Your
Own
Home
What
Do
You
Say
If
Only
They
And
Fill
In
Your
Blank
What
Did
You
Criticize
Them
For
This
Week
Thinking
Not
Very
Christian
Not
A
Good
Example
Not
A
Good
Witness
And
We
May
Even
Rightly
Perceive
Some
Sin
Tendency
In
What
We're
Saying
As
Sam
Reminded
So
Well
Last
Week
But
We
Fail
Don't
We
Into
That
Temptation
From
Those
Verses
That
Temptation
To
Impress
Others
With
Our
Own
Self
Appointed
Idea
Of
How
Everyone
Should
Be
More
Like
Me
Watch
Out
Watch
Out
Don't
Boast
As
It
Says
Here
Don't
Boast
In
Your
Victory
To
Make
A
Fellow
Sister
A
Fellow
Brother
In
A
Church
Family
Be
Like
You
You're
Not
Impressing
God
You're
Impressing
Yourself
And
Others
We
Fail
To
Even
Keep
All
Of
Our
Own
Appointed
Laws
Don't
Rejoice
When
You
Compel
Others
To
Be
Like
You
Paul
Tells
Us
Where
This
Leads
Back
In
Verse
8
Whoever
Sows
To
Please
Their
Flesh
From
The
Flesh
Will
Reap
Destruction
Sow
Your
Energy
Time
And
Money
To
This
Paul
Says
And
You
Will
Reap
Destruction
In
The
Church
Family
And
Are
In
Danger
Yourself
Of
Being
On
The
Path
To
Your
Own
Destruction
Please
Pray
For
Your
Leaders
In
This
Please
We
Seek
To
Walk
And
Sow
In
The
Spirit
Yet
We
Fail
At
Times
As
Elders
As
Deacons
As
Fellow
Sisters
And
Brothers
Among
You
Our
Position
Is
Perilous
Apart
From
Coming
Each
Day
And
Each
Moment
To
Christ
Because
We
Are
We
Are
Definitely
Tempted
To
Confuse
Our
Own
Standards
For
Those
Of
Christ
Himself
As
We
Meet
And
As
We
Discuss
And
We
Disagree
And
As
We
Come
To
Agreement
And
We
Seek
To
Lead
I
Know
That
I
Am
Tempted
To
Use
The
Tools
Of
This
World
The
Means
Of
The
Flesh
To
Bring
About
My
Desired
Outcome
I
Super
Spiritualize
My
Preferences
And
Say
You
Know
If
Only
If
Only
It
Was
Like
This
I
Think
It
Would
Be
A
Better
Witness
If
Only
It
Was
Like
This
I
Think
It
Would
Be
Better
For
The
Church
And
Be
More
Christian
Pray
That
As
Leaders
We
Would
Seek
To
Conform
People
To
The
Image
Of
Christ
And
Stay
To
Stay
Far
Away
From
Compelling
Others
To
Fit
Into
Our
Own
Mold
What
Hope
What
Hope
Well
Galatians
Chapter
1
Verse
13
I
Think
Is
A
Reminder
To
The
Hope
That
We
Have
Galatians
Chapter
1
Verse
13
Paul
Very
Early
On
In
The
Book
Speaks
Of
His
Own
Hope
For
You
Have
Heard
Of
My
Previous
Way
Of
Life
In
Judaism
How
Intensely
I
Persecuted
The
Church
Of
God
And
Tried
To
Destroy
It
I
Was
Advancing
In
Judaism
Beyond
Many
Of
My
Age
Among
My
People
And
Was
Extremely
Zealous
For
Traditions
Of
My
Father
Possibly
The
Best
Three
Verses
In
The
Book
But
When
God
But
When
God
It's
Paul's
Testimony
But
When
God
Intervened
He
Showed
Paul
That
The
Cross
Of
Jesus
Christ
He
Showed
Him
That
The
Cross
Of
Jesus
Christ
Crucifixion
Of
Self
Crucifixion
Of
Self
Not
Circumcision
Of
The
Outward
Flesh
But
Crucifixion
Of
Self
Was
What
Really
Mattered
What
Really
Counted
And
So
We
Can
Go
Back
To
Galatians
6
And
Verse
14
And
Paul
Says
May
I
Never
Boast
Except
In
The
Cross
Of
Our
Lord
Jesus
Christ
Through
Which
The
World
Has
Been
Crucified
To
Me
And
I
To
The
World
That's
The
Key
That's
The
Key
But
When
God
Showed
Us
The
Cross
Of
Jesus
The
Gospel
Begins
And
It
Centres
And
It
Ends
On
Our
Lord
Jesus
Christ
And
At
The
Cross
We
Find
Him
To
Be
Our
Lord
And
Savior
The
World
Paul
Told
Us
Is
Made
Up
Of
The
Weak
And
Miserable
Forces
And
Principles
The
Idea
Of
Living
To
Self
Insisting
We
Are
Right
Impressing
Others
Boasting
In
Our
Victories
Over
Others
That's
The
World
And
It's
Miserable
And
Weak
Principles
There's
Only
One
Solution
And
It's
At
The
Cross
Put
To
Death
The
World
And
The
Flesh
We
Must
Die
To
Those
Principles
Of
The
World
And
The
World
Must
Die
To
Us
Not
Death
For
The
Sake
Of
Death
But
Death
So
That
We
May
Be
Reborn
Verse
15
You
See
Neither
Circumcision
Nor
Uncircumcision
Means
Anything
What
Counts
Is
The
New
Creation
Oh
What
Glory
It
Is
Only
Of
The
Lord's
Design
And
Good
Purposes
That
We
Come
To
The
Cross
And
We
Think
Of
The
Cross
We
Die
At
The
Cross
In
Sin
And
Self
And
We
Are
Raised
To
Righteousness
We're
Born
Again
By
The
Spirit
Of
God
We
Give
Up
One
Path
Sowing
To
The
Flesh
And
We
Embrace
Another
Path
Sowing
To
The
Spirit
And
It's
Crucifixion
It's
Not
Circumcision
And
Rule
Keeping
Or
Uncircumcision
And
Looking
To
The
World
But
Crucifixion
That
Brings
About
A
New
Creation
Why
The
Cross
There
We
See
The
Death
Of
Jesus
So
That
We
Might
Have
Life
His
Death
Becomes
Our
Death
And
Therefore
His
Resurrection
Becomes
Our
Resurrection
Our
Sin
Is
Exchanged
For
All
Of
His
Goodness
His
Perfect
Flesh
Ruined
So
That
My
Ruined
Flesh
May
Be
Made
Perfect
As
He
Rises
And
As
He
Ascends
To
The
Father
His
Spirit
The
Holy
Spirit
Is
Poured
Out
On
Us
And
We
Are
Reborn
Sinner
If
You
Are
On
The
Path
To
Destruction
Come
To
The
Cross
Of
Jesus
And
Be
Reborn
Exchange
All
That
You
Have
For
Eternal
Life
In
That
Moment
When
We
Came
To
The
Cross
We
Stopped
We
Stopped
When
We
Came
To
The
Cross
Our
But
When
God
Moment
We
Stopped
Looking
To
Our
Left
And
Our
Right
For
Justification
From
Others
And
Those
Scales
They
Fell
Away
From
Our
Eyes
And
We
Saw
Jesus
God
Became
Big
God
Became
Big
And
People's
Opinions
Of
Us
Became
Small
It
Was
Glorious
It
Was
Glorious
We
Escaped
The
Wide
Path
Of
Destruction
And
We
Skipped
Over
To
The
Narrow
Path
Of
Life
That's
Why
It
Says
In
Verse
Eight
Whoever
Sows
To
Please
The
Spirit
From
The
Spirit
Will
Reap
Eternal
Life
We
Are
Those
That
Sow
To
The
Spirit
Hallelujah
We
Have
Been
Born
Again
At
The
Cross
Our
Flesh
Has
Been
Put
To
Death
The
Cross
Of
Jesus
Christ
Is
Now
Our
Only
Boast
Verse
16
Peace
And
Mercy
To
All
Who
Follow
This
Rule
To
The
Israel
Of
God
God's
People
Enjoy
Peace
And
Mercy
Because
We
Follow
The
Rule
Of
Crucifixion
We
Follow
The
Rule
Of
New
Creation
Come
To
The
Cross
And
We
Will
Know
This
Peace
And
Mercy
Now
The
Path
For
Believers
Sowing
To
Spirit
Is
Not
An
Easy
Path
And
Just
Briefly
Two
Hints
To
That
In
This
Passage
Two
Personal
Reminders
From
Paul
Verse
11
He
Says
See
With
What
Large
Letters
I
Use
As
I
Write
To
You
With
My
Own
Hand
It's
A
Strange
Kind
Of
Phrase
I
Think
Paul
Normally
And
Maybe
Throughout
This
Letter
Up
To
This
Point
Was
Dictating
The
Letter
To
A
Scribe
Who
Wrote
Down
Exactly
What
Paul
Said
And
It
Seems
At
This
Point
Paul
Takes
The
Pen
Himself
Into
His
Hand
And
We
Have
Other
Hints
From
This
Letter
And
From
Elsewhere
In
Scripture
That
Paul's
Eyesight
May
Have
Been
Afflicted
And
So
It's
Quite
Likely
When
He
Says
See
What
Large
Letters
I
Am
Using
He
Is
My
Eyesight
Is
So
Bad
I
I'm
Writing
Here
With
Large
Letters
His
Eyesight
Is
Probably
Failing
Him
And
In
Verse
17
From
Now
On
Let
No
One
Cause
Me
Trouble
Because
Many
Had
Caused
Paul
Trouble
In
His
Defense
Of
The
Gospel
For
I
Bear
On
My
Body
The
Marks
Of
Jesus
He
Bears
On
His
Body
The
Marks
Of
Jesus
Paul
Was
Beaten
He
Was
Whipped
He
Was
Left
For
Dead
He
Was
Shipwrecked
He
Faced
Wild
Animals
All
For
The
Gospel
You see
Christian
Living
Isn't
An
Academic
Exercise
It's
That
Daily
Cross
Carrying
Sowing
To
The
Spirit
Is
Not
The
Easy
Path
It's
No
Walk
In
The
Park
So
It's
The
Question
How
Do
We
Keep
Going
How
Do
We
Individually
And
We
As
A
Church
Keep
Going
Because
It
Is
Hard
It's
Wearing
At
Times
And
Four
Seasons
This
Time
Of
Covid
Lockdown
In
Particular
Has
Brought
An
Unusual
Strain
On
The
Church
Opportunities
To
Do
Good
To
One
Another
Have
Diminished
We've
Not
Been
Able
To
Meet
We
We've
Grown
Apart
In
Some
Ways
And
We've
Formed
Habits
Of
Isolation
From
One
Another
As
We've
Been
Cut
Off
From
The
Body
As
It
Is
Meant
To
Be
And
Many
Of
Us
I
Know
Have
Felt
The
Strain
Of
Coming
Back
To
Church
With
Questions
We
Never
Had
Before
When
We
Came
Here
On
A
Sunday
Morning
Will
I
Be
Safe
What
Can
I
Do
What
Can't
I
Do
Where
Can
I
Walk
Or
Stand
Or
Sit
Will
I
Upset
People
If
I
Unintentionally
Do
The
Wrong
Thing
In
Their
Eyes
Am
I
Being
Judged
For
Wearing
Or
Not
Wearing
A
Face
Covering
I
Don't
Want
To
Upset
Others
That's
Not
Why
I
Come
To
Church
But
I
Have
Concerns
Well
Some
Of
Those
Concerns
Maybe
Resonate
And I
Think
We
All
Need
To
Look
Then
From
Verse
Eight
Again
The
Latter
Half
Of
Verse
Eight
Down
To
Ten
Whoever
Sows
To
Please
The
Spirit
From
The
Spirit
Will
Reap
Eternal
Life
Let
Us
Not
Become
Weary
In
Doing
Good
For
At
The
Proper
Time
We
Will
Reap
A
Harvest
If
We
Do
Not
Give
Up
Therefore
As
We
Have
Opportunity
Let
Us
Do
Good
To
All
People
Especially
To
Those
Who
Belong
To
The
Family
Of
Believers
Eternal
Life
Versace
Is
In
View
Here
Folks
Eternal
Life
Don't
Become
Weary
In
Doing
Good
It's
Hard
I
Know
It's
Easier
At
Times
To
Opt
Out
And
To
Collapse
Back
In
On
Ourselves
But
Good
Works
Are
Part
Of
What
Is
New
In
The
New
Creation
I
What
Does
It
Mean
To
Be
The
New
Creation
Well
It
Must
Mean
From
Here
Good
Works
It's
Part
Of
What's
New
And
At
The
Proper
Time
When
Christ
Returns
Or
We
Go
To
Be
With
Him
Through
Death
We
Will
Reap
A
Harvest
If
We
Do
Not
Give
Up
We're
Born
Again
In
Order
To
Be
Like
Jesus
Have
You
Considered
That
We're
Born
Again
To
Be
Like
Jesus
To
Love
Like
Jesus
Loves
To
Do
Good
Jesus
Said
By
This
Everyone
Will
Know
That
You
Are
My
Disciples
If
You
Love
One
Another
Love
For
One
Another
It's
Hard
Especially
Now
But
Do
Not
Grow
Weary
Through
The
Stones
And
The
Brambles
That
We
Encounter
On
The
Path
God
Is
Calling
Us
To
Not
Grow
Weary
In
Doing
Good
Especially
To
The
Family
Right
Here
What
Does
Doing
Good
Look
Like
Well
We
Skipped
Over
It
But
Let's
Go
Back
To
Verse
Six
Because
Verse
Six
And
If
You
Look
At
Verse
Six
And
Verse
Ten
Are
Kind
Of
Bookends
Of
This
Section
On
The
Spirit
I
Think
Verse
Six
Is
A
Practical
Outworking
Of
Verse
Ten
But
Did
You
Read
Or
Hear
Verse
Six
Right
Let
Me
Help
You
Out
Pay
Your
Pastor
Jeannie
Are you
Allowed
To
Say
That
In
A
Sermon
I
Don't
Know
We'll
See
We'll
See
What
We get
Away
With
This
Morning
So
Let
Me
Help
You
Out
It
Says
Pay
Your
Pastor
What
Yep
Pay
Your
Pastor
It's
A
Simple
Enough
Idea
Nevertheless
The one
Who
Receives
Instruction
In
The
Word
Should
Share
All
Good
Things
With
Their
Instructor
As
Someone
Is
Sharing
The
Word
Of
God
With
You
Ministering
And
Giving
And
Doing
Good
To
You
By
Giving
You
The
Word
You
Should
Share
Back
With
Them
That's
What
This
Christian
Community
Life
Is
Like
Together
You
Should
Share
Your
Goods
The
Good
Things
That
You
Have
Share
Them
In
Return
Yes
That
Means
That
One
Key
Application
Of
This
Verse
Is
That
We
Should
Care
For
The
Needs
Of
Our
Primary
Instructor
In
The
Word
Our
Pastor
Johnny
Grant
We
Should
Pay
Our
Pastor
Now
I'm
Thankful
That
As
A
Church
I
Think
We
Get
This
We
Get
This
As
God
Has
Blessed
Us
Financially
We
Have
Shared
Good
Things
With
Our
Pastor
And
Long
May
Continue
As
The
Lord
Provides
So
This
Is
An
Encouragement
To
Us
This
Morning
And
That's
An
Example
A
Very
Practical
Example
Of
Doing
Good
Within
The
Church
Of
Sowing
To
The
Spirit
Sharing
With
Those
Who
Minister
To
Us
Let
Me
Tell
You
The
Other
Part
From
That
Verse
That
You
Might
Have
Missed
You
Are
Also
Receiving
You
Who
Are
Being
Instructed
And
We're
Getting
The
Better
Side
Of
The
Deal
We're
Getting
The
Better
Side
Of
The
Deal
We
May
Think
We're
The
Ones
Doing
Good
To
Our
Pastor
By
Sharing
Our
Finances
Or
Our
Money
But
We're
Being
Fed
By
The
Eternal
Word
Of
God
Sunday
After
Sunday
And
Week
After
Week
Of
Pastoral
Care
And
Ministry
That
Hard
Spiritual
Unseen
Work
That
The
World
Can
Never
Offer
The
World
Does
Not
Have
Is
Happening
Here
In
The
Christian
Community
And
Through
Our
Pastor
So
Share
With
Each
Other
Share
Good
Things
Share
The
Word
Share
Our
Resources
Do
Good
To
One
Another
Church
Find
Opportunities
Even
In
Lockdown
Or
Restricted
Times
Like
These
Do
Good
To
The
Family
Now
Is
A
Unique
Time
To
Practically
Demonstrate
To
The
Watching
World
Our
Love
For
God's
Family
The
Church
Family
Don't
Give
Up
Paul
Says
Don't
Grow
Weary
It
Is
Hard
But
Give
And
Receive
Share
With
One
Another
All
That
You
Have
We
Are
New
Creations
We
Walk
By
The
Spirit
And
We
So
Good
To
Our
Church
Family
Not
Insisting
On
Recruiting
Others
To
Our
Causes
Like
The
Circumcision
Party
We're
Doing
But
Sharing
What
We
Have
As
The
Lord
Has
Given
To
Each
One
Of
Us
I
Want
To
Arrive
Together
At
A
Eternal
Reward
God
Has
Put
Me
With
You
And
He's
Put
You
With
Me
Together
Peace
And
Mercy
From
God
Towards
One
Another
In
This
Family
Love
God
Love
Others
I
Want
To
End
This
Morning
Just
By
Reading
From
Verse
14
To
The
End
Of
The
Chapter
And
To
The
Book
Together
To
Encourage
Our
Hearts
In
This
Work
Verse
14
May
I
Never
Boast
Except
In
The
Cross
Of
Our
Lord
Jesus
Christ
Through
Which
The
World
Has
Been
Crucified
To
Me
And
I
To
The
World
Neither
Circumcision
Nor
Uncircumcision
Means
Anything
What
Counts
As
The
New
Creation
Peace
And
Mercy
To
All
Who
Follow
This
Rule
To
The
Israel
Of
God
From
Now
On
Let
No
One
Cause
Trouble
For
I
Bear
On
My
Body
The
Marks
Of
Jesus
The
Grace
Of
Our
Lord
Jesus
Christ
Be
With
Your
Spirit
Brothers
And
Sisters
Amen
Thank you
Ralph
I'd like us to keep our Bibles open just for a moment at the passage we've just looked at Galatians chapter 6
Together we are going to share in the Lord's Supper as we gather together as God's people
It is for those who are trusting in Christ, for those who have that story that we were reminded of that they can say
but when, when God intervened and caused me and enabled me to turn to him
Verse 14 says may I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ
It's never about our performance but about Christ's perfect performance on our behalf
His life from my life
Again to use and to think of the language that Ralph has directed our thoughts to
that Christ came and took on our flesh
that opposition to God
and paid the penalty for us
dying our death
living the perfect life on our behalf
so that we could receive the goodness of his life
So there should be a joyful confidence from us today
not in self
but only in Christ
And that is what we are going to celebrate
together
as we share in the Lord's Supper
We remember, we look back to that point in time
where we moved from
a life of flesh
to living
by the Spirit
no longer trusting in self
but trusting only
in him
We need to come back time and time again
and renounce
all means and all ways of the flesh
to confess
before him
to humbly become before him
and say
not I
but Christ
Before
communion is served
served to you
Nick and Ralph
or Alex
I think are going to do that
but you can stay where you are
to be served
to you
the bread and juice
will be brought to you
in a little
container
just take it
eat
and drink
as you receive it
and we're going to play a song
which you can
meditate
and follow the words
on the screen
as we do that
the Lord Jesus
reminds us
that he took bread
and gave thanks
and he broke it
and he gave it to his
disciples
saying
this is my body
given
for you
do this
in remembrance
of me
in the same way
after supper
he took the cup
saying
this cup
is the new covenant
in my blood
which is poured out
for you
so as we eat
of the bread
as we drink
of the juice
we remember
that point in time
where we turn
to Christ
Christ worked
in our life
we confess
our sin afresh
we trust
in him
so before
it is served
let's just take a moment
to just reflect
on what we've heard
bring our confession
to the Lord
and rest
in his perfect work
for us
Amen