Transcription
A good evening, everybody. How are you? How are you? Well, listen, tonight's communion night and that's a good thing. And yeah, I love it, too. I love it as well, but before we get into our communion service tonight, uh just a few things.
I want to remind all of you at a time like this as our nation is at war and uh now so many nations. I think at last count today, I think it's 14 nations now uh in this war that's taking place. Um and yet um it's a remarkable thing as you as you see uh the power of God at work. A lot of people uh I was on CBN News today. They wanted to ask me um what did I think about Christians who are saying that all that we're doing right now in the Middle East is wrong. That uh this is not of God. And I I had to I honestly just said these would be Christians who have never read the their Old Testament to understand their New Testament because Jesus said there there would be wars and rumors of wars. And uh when you have a theoretical Christianity, it's not an actual Christianity. Nobody wants war.
But it's like it what Abraham Lincoln. In fact, I know that our Liberty Group has made trips there. They'll do it again, Lord willing, in the future. And that is when you go to the Lincoln Monument, Lincoln Memorial, uh as you're looking at Abraham Lincoln, if you if you read what's inscribed uh on the right side, there's I think five uh quotations from Psalms that are written in his Gettysburg Address that's on the wall. And one of them is I'm for peace, but my enemy is for war. You know, David said that. And uh Lincoln wrote that into his speech.
When you have a uh a nation like we see right now that is being led by uh crazy people in Iran, and they're out to destroy the world because of their theological belief. They actually have a theology that tells them they're to catch the world on fire, and that will cause their their redeemer to return. Very different than the biblical redeemer. That said, how do you deal with somebody like that who believes, even as they're losing this war right now, they believe that that's a good thing? Because the closer they get to the fire, the engulfing of the world, then their Messiah will will return. How do you stop someone like that? It's a cult thinking. And so, there's a lot of news going on, and there's a lot of things like that, and uh I just want all of you to realize something. You keep your eyes on Jesus Christ. Keep reading your Bible. Stop listening to people. How many ti- I I I sound like a broken record, don't I? Aren't I saying that a lot lately? I have to say that. Stop listening to people. Read your Bible.
And um but we are rejoicing in what we're hearing of so many uh Persians uh mentioning, saying the name of Jesus, and rejoicing, and it's just incredible. So, we we must pray for them. Please pray for them. These are your brothers and sisters. And um it's my goodness, today's Wednesday, and um we're just days into this, and um you know, what has gone on so far uh I pray is the liberation of Iran for the people to be able to live their faith freely uh in Christ and and also the implosion uh of Islam. You got to remember there was no Islam until uh late uh 600s or early 700s. You have to remember that. Um That should That's That says everything.
And so when when this belief system is is just very very You know what? It's the opposite actually of what we're doing tonight. We're celebrating tonight the willing sacrifice of Jesus for us. He laid down our lives He laid down his life for us. In Islam, you're called upon to lay down your life for yourself. That maybe maybe you might make it into Well, if you're a man anyway, make it into paradise. That's not the Bible and that's not the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And we're going to talk more about his precious person here in a moment, but want to encourage all of us as a nation. You know, the scripture tells us in uh Micah 6:8 that what does the Lord require of us? But to to do justly to love mercy and to walk humbly with our God.
So, look that's the Lord speaking to the believer. My prayer has been this way, Lord, as you as you go before us and before Israel right now and now as you go before France. Yes. France. And then England felt embarrassed that France got it. France The Fran- The French got in before the English. So now the English are trying to get in, but we just found out they tried and they couldn't. They got to wait another week before they can get their ship to go. And but as believers, the non-believer is not going to say, "Oh, we need to we need to go and do this, but we need to be humbly before our God." That's for us to intercede. That's where we come in as believers. The unbeliever is not going to do that. They're going to go do what they do. We're the ones that are to be intercessors. Amen? Make sure that you make that a active part of your life right now and and so tonight as we prepare our hearts for communion I want to make this very clear.
Jesus when he spoke about the elements of that Passover evening he did something that had never been done before. It was Passover in Israel, Passover on the Jewish calendar. And he not only fulfilled Passover in himself but he introduced communion. So watch this everyone. Some of you need to hear this. Prior to Jesus going to the cross God recognized the sacrifice of an animal. That was the Levitical procedure that was God's law. So think about the weekend, for example, that Jesus would go to the cross. All that week, Jewish homes, not only in Israel, but in the world, would have prepared that little lamb. We've talked about the little lamb before. You were commanded in Exodus chapter 12 and 13 to select a little lamb, bringing that little lamb into your home. It had to be perfect, a little male lamb, not a freckle, not a black hair on it, not a gray hair. Had to be perfectly white. And dad was to inspect it to make sure it was perfect because it would be his, think about this. Think about the role of a husband and of a father today. I think is even greater than what it was in in in Egypt at that time or in Israel 2,000 years ago. The the dad was to select this perfect little lamb to be the sacrifice for the family. And the dad acted like the priest in the home. And by his actions of offering that innocent blood of this precious little lamb put on the doorpost and lintel of the house, their home was saved. God passed over. That is the death angel passed over the home marked by blood. But listen. Did the blood of that little lamb, did it cover sin or did it take away sin? Covered. Thank you. It covered sin. The Bible tells us that the Old Testament sacrifice covered sin. Never Never did it say the blood of the animal took away sins. In other words, all the animal sacrifices leading up to Jesus going to the cross, they were all speaking about you, if you lived then, trusting in the symbolic act. Are you tracking me? Looking to the future for the real to arrive. And the real one was the Son of God who takes away the sins of the world, right? So, that little lamb is precious as it well was it that his blood only covered your sin, didn't take it away. But the Bible tells us that Christ came and he took our sins away. He didn't cover them. Nowhere does the Bible say that Christ's blood covers our sins. No. Then he would be no different than a little lamb, which again is symbolic. No, he would be no different. He takes away. The Bible tells us in the book of Colossians chapter 2 that he did it this way. That he being perfect, of course, was our sacrificial lamb. That he went to the cross and on the cross our sins were nailed there. Having him, Christ, go to the cross, having wiped out, removed, our sins from us. Having gone to the cross, he was nailed there and our sins were nailed with him. Imagine that. So, that in the moment of his death, according to God in God's uh database, in the cloud, the record of your sins and mine, who the eternal God knew before you and I were ever born, he knew all about our sinful life, but in Christ was washed away. Was washed away.
So, if somebody would say tonight, "How do I get to heaven?" The cross. It's the cross. On what basis, watch this, on what basis does God forgive sin? That's a deep question that sadly far too many Christians cannot answer. On what basis, what's the criteria by which God forgives sins? That is the That is the question of all ages. The answer is the cross. Why the cross? Because the cross is where Jesus was literally sacrificed. Are you hearing me? It was no longer typology. It was It There wasn't a lamb crucified on a cross. It was the Son of God. He is the lamb who takes away the sins of the world. I stress that to say this. The Bible says Jesus Christ suffered once and for all, never to suffer again.
Some of you need to hear this cuz there's a big debate going on in our nation right now, again because of biblical ignorance. People are saying, "Well, you know, we need the cup and the bread to literally become the body again and the blood. This is a big This is a big thing going on right now in America. We need to have these elements trans- transubstantiated into the blood and body of Jesus so we could really experience forgiveness. Uh that's what we have to have happen." Friends, the Bible condemns that. The Bible says Jesus was offered up once. Never again. And Jesus himself said, "You see this cup and this bread?" He said, "This is my body. This is my blood." Really? At that moment he said that. Listen, in that moment in the upper room when he said, "This bread, it's my body." How How did that happen? What what part of his body was given so that the bread would be his body? Did Did he put blood in the cup by what? Cutting his finger? No, seriously. It was never the blood and the flesh of Jesus in the upper room because in John's gospel he says, "The words that I've just spoken to you concerning the drinking of my blood and the eating of my flesh." He said, "The words that I've just spoken to you are spirit and they are truth." Did you get that everybody? He never said drink blood. He never said eat flesh. He never said to be cannibalistic. Never. Why is this important? Because it is a type and a symbol as powerful and as meaningful as the type and the symbol of the little lamb was back in Egypt and all the time forward until this uh weekend 2,000 years ago when Jesus came. Think of it. That's It's not a leap for you to realize, "Hey, wait a minute. Yeah." All those of the Old Testament economy looked forward to Christ coming. Christ came. Now we all look back at his sacrifice. This is liberating and it is 100% biblically accurate. But people today are getting balled up and bound up in human religion. Jesus did not die on the cross to get you all befuddled and confused with human religion. His sacrifice was once and for all and when Jesus rose again from the dead, the Bible tells us he rose in glory. That's why when he showed up when the disciples were hiding, the men of faith, the great men of faith. The apostles. The Bible says for fear they were hiding and they had all the windows and doors shut. And the Bible says suddenly Jesus appeared to them. Can you imagine? They're all in there. What's going to happen next? And then there he is. And he says, "Be not afraid. Be not afraid." He keeps Remember he says it A FEW TIMES. "BE NOT AFRAID. BE NOT AFRAID. It is I. Handle me and see." I love how he says this. He says "A ghost does not have what?" He says "Flesh and bone." Which is very remarkable. Flesh and bone as you see me have. Isn't that a weird way of saying it? What do we say in our day? We say flesh and blood. Flesh and bone. And then of course Thomas is there and Jesus says, "Hi Tom. Specially you, buddy. Come on over here. Come on." And Jesus singles Thomas out cuz Thomas had said, "I'm not going to believe unless I can put my finger in his side and put my finger in the holes in his hands." Can you imagine that moment? Jesus must have stuck out his hands. Thomas Can you imagine seeing through his hands? Thomas, go go ahead. Can you And then my side. And Thomas fell to his knees. And he says, "My Lord and my God." I'm grateful for Thomas's doubts because Thomas by his inquiry you and I have greater confirmation.
The beautiful thing about what we're talking about now is your salvation is not some sort of typology. Your salvation God's power to wash your blood away by the sacrifice of himself once and for all. That's not theory. And to all who have opened up their hearts and their lives to allow themselves to be forgiven by God. Have experienced that liberation. Notice. The the the religious world in America is getting all flustered up right now. And and argumentative in debates. And all these newcomers to theology, they've got all the answers. Isn't that Isn't that funny? They they just arrived. But they've got all the answers. So they think. They're talking about Jesus. I'm not quite sure who which Jesus they're talking about because the Jesus I know is found in the Bible. They're talking about some interesting things. Don't fall for it. Know this. That when Jesus said on the cross, it is finished. I'm so grateful he said it that way. He didn't hang there on the cross at the end and say, "You're all finished." He didn't say, "I'm finished." He said, "It." "It is finished." What is it? What is it that he was talking about? It was the work of atonement. The sacrifice. The atonement that is something, someone has has be more perfect, more innocent, either in symbolism or in reality on your behalf to be offered up for your liberation, for your freedom, for your forgiveness. If it's an animal, yikes. If it's some man or system, that's what the book of Hebrews is all about. If you're looking to a man to to say to you, "You're forgiven." That's scary. We are to go to Christ Jesus directly and repent before him. Lord, I have sinned against you. And I ask you to forgive me of my sins and I'm hearing tonight even in this moment of devotion this evening that you're the one that came from heaven to earth, the eternal God, veiled himself uh infused himself into humanity, just like us. Except we didn't have a choice. We are mere mortals. When Jesus came, when that conception took place within the womb of Mary, a miracle happened that only had to happen once. And that is Mary was now carrying the son of God. It Listen, according to the scriptures, the Hebrew prophets, we didn't we didn't understand fully, of course, like we know now. Can you imagine you guys in this room, we in this room, we what we know now, if Moses if we were to visit Moses back in the day and tell him how it's going to go, he would have flipped. Yeah, yeah, Moses, remember Genesis 3:15? Remember when that was said? Yeah, I mean, I wrote that down. Yeah, I got that. You know how it's going to happen? I'd love to know. Did you know that I would trust any of you in this room would say, "This is how it's going to happen." You Can you imagine Moses? What? God would come into this world. Why? Because our sin is so horrific and so terrible and so wicked that no good man could have died for us. Only God could have died for us. Only Jesus Christ coming in the likeness of human flesh, yet without sin, offers up himself willingly.
Today, one of my grandkids were talking about the difference between psychiatrics and psychology. What's the difference? I said, "There's a big difference." So, we were talking about the difference. And we got on the topic of emotions. And I said, "You know, Jesus, just like you and I, Jesus battled the temptation of emotion because he was fully human, but fully God. He was without sin, but all of temptations that came to Jesus were 100% real. That was not some sort of a mock running with the devil. That was real. When Satan tempted Jesus, those were real temptations, but he didn't give in to them. You know, you're going to be tempted every day of your life, Christian. Everybody, all of us will be. Don't give in to them. Jesus fought the temptations with the word of God. But here's what's amazing. Do you remember when Jesus said, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?" Remember, he's quoting Psalm 22. "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" Why was that Psalm 22? And why was it written a thousand years before Jesus would say it from the cross? It was It was a prophecy of King David. Because, listen, on the cross, Jesus, when he cried out, when the Father had, as Habakkuk says, I think, don't quote me. This is an old rusty mind working right now. I It might be Habakkuk 1:17. I'm not sure. But I think the verse goes something like this, that my eyes are too pure to behold evil. The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 5 that that God the Father laid on Jesus the iniquity of us all, just like it says in Isaiah 53. Is it possible that in that moment, when the absolute atonement of Jesus was now he's carrying the sins of all of us in the entire world, that the Father turned his eyes away? And Jesus said, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" That was his humanity speaking. Think of it. Jesus felt that aloneness so that you would never have to.
Listen, you can be an atheist here tonight and you have no idea what it's like to be abandoned by God. You say, "Well, that doesn't matter because I don't believe in him." Let me tell you something right now. It doesn't Your Your unbelief in God doesn't matter to us except we want you to get saved so that so that you don't wind up in hell. We want you to come with us. Here's the thing. Just because you don't believe in God, you're still benefiting from all of the benefits of his mercy, grace, and peace right now even though you don't believe in him. Did you know that? You have no idea. Your life is benefited right now as an atheist because God is good. And the moment God pulls the plug on that and you hear this big sucking noise going down the drain, only then will you encounter a world that is truly without God. The atheist doesn't even know what he's talking about. HE DOESN'T EVEN KNOW WHAT a world is like without God. You think the world is bad now? Just wait till it's abandoned by God. Given up. Given over. Don't do that. Jesus Christ died so you don't have to be an atheist anymore. Jesus Christ died so you don't have to be addicted to that sin anymore. Jesus Christ died because all of sin have come short of the glory of God. And so the Bible tells us that we must repent of our sins and accept him. John chapter 1 verse 12 says, "As many as received him, to them he gave power or the authority to become children of God." Receive. It's the exact same invitation that you see Jesus.
This is a This is a scary moment in my in my opinion. The church I think it's the church at Laodicea, is it not? Where Jesus knocks on the door and says, "Behold, if anyone will hear my voice and open up, I will come in to him." Jesus said that to a church. Now, that's why many commentators, and I agree with them, that the Book of Revelation, the church of Laodicea, is the unsaved church. It's an unsaved church. Very religious, but no salvation. It's lost. And Jesus is knocking on the door, and I think it's Rembrandt who painted the painting of Jesus knocking on the door, but the door's got no handle. It can only be opened up from the inside. So, all he can do is knock. You've got to open the door. He's knocking on your heart. Even this week, maybe in maybe in your whole lifetime, you're realizing he's been knocking. Open the door. Let him in. It's got to be by your will. He's not going to beat the door down. He knocks. You've got to let him in. Well, what does that mean? Let him come on in. He'll show you what it means. Can you do that tonight? Would you do that tonight?
Maybe you're watching right now, and you're joining us either by various modes of media. You could be watching right now uh live stream. You could be watching from the Real Life Network. You can be watching from anywhere in the world right now. And I tell you, I don't know if Starlink is operating right now in Iran because everything has been knocked out by the Iranian leadership so that the people can't hear. But what if you right now are in Iran right now? And you're watching right now live. Jesus Christ says, "If you come to me, I will never turn you away." Jesus Christ says that I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but through me. Jesus said, "For God so loved the world." That's you. "For God so loved the world that he gave, gifted, his only begotten son that whosoever would believe on him would not perish but have everlasting life." But you've got to come with him. Here's the Here's the caveat. Here's the requirement. You've got to come with him with your sins in hand. That is you you You don't hide it anymore. You don't cover up. You don't blame people about it anymore. You own it. That this is your lust. This is your anger. This is your fear. This is your angst, whatever it is. This is your jealousies. This is your gambling. This is your anger, whatever it is. You bring it. And you realize that he died on the cross for your sins. I My sins got Jesus crucified. Jack. Me. I don't There's a couple thousand people sitting in front of me. Listen. Their sins to me don't matter. My sin put Jesus on the cross. Each of our sins put him on the cross. That's how much you matter to God. And he wants you to know that saving experience. That's saving grace.
Father, we come before you now in the name of Jesus Christ, the crucified savior and resurrected Lord, the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. The one who was, who is, who is to come, the almighty. And Lord, as we pray tonight, tonight here in Southern California, but maybe it's the mid-morning hours or the noon hours somewhere else in the world right now, and someone's hearing this right now, and their heart has been touched by your Holy Spirit, who is both here and there, saying, "Choose Christ and live." In some way, shape, or form, you may be hearing God speaking to your heart, and he's saying to you right now, "Look to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth." Isn't it remarkable to think that as nations have been moving, and all of this has come about, for example, in Iran? Would God allow such a thing to bring one person to hear the gospel truth? Absolutely. Because your soul matters that much.
Maybe you're here right now in this auditorium, in this sanctuary, and you're wondering if God will really forgive you. Maybe Maybe you're the one Maybe Satan has so messed you up that you're the one that has been robbed and beaten, raped and destroyed, and you've been convinced somehow that it's all your fault, and that God would never forgive you. That's how the liar works, you know. It's time for you to be forgiven and set free. Maybe you've been the perpetrator upon such people. It's time for you to confess your sins to God and be set free. Now, maybe the person that's hardest to reach in this gathering right now, or maybe wherever you might be watching this right now, is the person who's so good. You're the best person in the whole town. You're the best person in the village or in the city. And yet, God knows your depravity. God knows your thoughts. And God says you're a sinner. And you need the cross, and you need Christ. You're the hardest person of all to reach because you think you're okay. You're not okay. We are not okay without Jesus Christ. Religion cannot save you now. If you hear him, open the door of your heart now. And say, "Lord Jesus, come into my life. I ask you to forgive me of all my sins and to wash me clean and to make me new. I'm done with religion. I want to know you relationally. I want to know you, God. I want to worship you freely. I want to know that when my time comes to die, that I'll see you and that you took away the sting and the power of the grave. And I thank you that tonight we celebrate the reality through the elements of bread and of wine that speak of what you've done for us. And Lord, tonight I pray that not only these would be forgiven of their sins, but Lord, there would be those of us tonight that might partake and we'll might experience healing, physical healing. Lord, bring your emotional healing upon your people. Many hearts are troubled and minds are tormented. And Lord, you are the only one that can liberate in such an area. Maybe someone's psychology is very skewed and broken and you can put them in their right mind tonight. Maybe you're here tonight and you need God to do a great work by healing your family. Ask him tonight, Christian. Ask him. And I ask tonight that you, my friend, would ask the Lord this. I cannot ask him for you. You must ask him for yourself. To all of us who are believers, ask him to fill you afresh, anew, with the power of His Holy Spirit. Ask him to baptize you afresh in the power of the Holy Spirit. As Paul wrote to the Ephesians, he said to that group to that church, "Be being filled with the Holy Spirit." Continuously for the day, for each day. Ask him, "Lord, if there's more in for my life, if there's more power, if there's more calling, if there's more opportunity, Lord, here I am. Lord, you saved me and now I want you to use me. Lord, make me your child." A child who is gloriously and happily used by the Father.
Tonight, my friend, if you're praying to accept Christ and to receive him as Lord and Savior, if you've prayed that prayer tonight, I want you to know something. The Bible says that you've been forgiven of your sins. But the Holy Spirit will take up residence. You may not feel anything right now at all. It's not a feeling. But if you meant that prayer, you're going to notice in very short order of time your thought life is going to be altered. You're going to you're going to be thinking differently, and you're going to be quite shocked and surprised about that. You're going to wonder, "What is going on in my head? I have never had these kind of thoughts before." And it will be evidence of the Holy Spirit having come into your life. He's going to start leading you. Isn't that a beautiful thing to be led by God?
So, tonight as we worship, those of you who've accepted Christ, if you're not here on campus, maybe you're somewhere in the world, you can use water if that's all you have. You can use a crust of bread if that's all you have. And you can partake of communion tonight by thanking Jesus as the cup represents his blood. Thank you, Lord, for your blood that washes away all sins. And Lord, thank you for your body represented by the bread. Thank you that you gave yourself willingly, and that you were glorified, and you rose again from the dead. Thank you, Lord, for being the bread of life. And you praise him tonight, and will praise him in song tonight. But friends, as we do, we're going to ask you, there's no rush to do this, but we're going to ask you you get up from wherever you're at, and make your way to the tables. They're in the back of the church, they're in the front of the church. You come if you're all by yourself, you come by yourself or you grab somebody and ask them to join you. Maybe you're here with your family. But I would really ask if dads or husbands tonight would step out of the comfort zone, friend, and stop playing it safe and pray, get the elements in in your hands and go off to the side or go outside and pray for your kids or for your wife. And partake together asking God to heal. But one thing is certain, my friend, that this tonight is reserved only for the Christian. But I pray I pray that you've become a Christian tonight here. So as Gia leads us in worship, as you feel prompted by the Lord that now's the time for us to go, just make your way out into the aisle. You don't have to hurry. There's plenty of time. And um make your way to the tables and be thinking about what it is you're doing. You're coming to pay honor and glory to the ministry of Jesus Christ who is the Lord and Savior, the King of kings and the Lord of lords, the high priest, the great high priest, the merciful one, the loving one, the gracious one, the one who loves you. And no greater love could Jesus display for you than that he laid down his life for you. Honor him by worshipping now in spirit and in truth. Let's worship him now.