Sermon Brief
Date Written: April 13, 2011
Date Preached: April 17, 2011
Where Preached: OPBC (AM)
Sermon Details:
Series Title: Falling in Love With Jesus
Sermon Title: Preparing our Hearts for What He Has Done
Sermon Text: John 19:16-18 [ESV]
16So he delivered Him over to them to be crucified. So they took Jesus, 17and He went out, bearing His own cross, to the place called The Place of a Skull, which in Aramaic is called Golgotha. 18There they crucified Him, and with Him two others, one on either side, and Jesus between them.
The words of John here in this passage recount the actual events of Jesus being crucified by those who hated Him. These believers thought that their actions were something that THEY had caused… something that THEY had conceived and carried out, but in reality their actions was the fulfillment of God’s redemptive plan for His creation.
This plan was set forth from BEFORE the beginning and it had been prophesied on many occasions BEFORE Jesus was ever born… Over 700 years before Jesus was nailed to the Cross… the prophet Isaiah said this about the Messiah who was to come:
3He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces He was despised, and we held Him in low esteem. 4Surely He took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered Him punished by God, stricken by Him, and afflicted. 5But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on Him, and by His wounds we are healed. 6We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
Jesus was a man who knew suffering, the shame of the cross caused many to turn away and despise Him and say that he was worthless. But we find that what Jesus did on the Cross of Calvary was something we could NEVER do for ourselves… v.6 in Isaiah reveals our problem:
6We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way;
When we turn to our OWN way, we turn away from God. Turning away from God is what the Bible calls sin.
Sin is the great evil that invaded the Garden of Eden…
Sin is the great evil that stole and stripped away the innocence and perfection of the Garden.
Sin is the reason that Humanity was banned from perfection,
Sin is the reason Humanity was cast out because of its choice to disobey and sin…
Sin is the reason that Humanity is stained! Humanity is forever stained with the sin of ITS choice, and because of this sin we are permanently separated from God… with NO hope of ever being reconciled… no hope of being restored to the way it was at Creation… an intimate walk with God.
This evil that we call sin is what separates us from God!
It is the barrier that we cannot break.
It is like an ocean we cannot swim.
It is like a canyon that we cannot cross.
This evil sin that dominates who we are… DOOMS us to be eternally separated from God! This is an existence that ends in terrible suffering and anguish. This evil SIN is the destroyer of our very soul!
First we need to know what is sin… Sin is anything that separates you from God or comes between you and God. God has set some boundaries for us in the 10 commandments and in the 2 Great commandments.
For believers Jesus set forth some teachings that require obedience… and when we are DISOBEDIENT we are sinful. No matter who you are… no matter what you do… SIN is a part of your life and there is NOTHING you can do to rid yourself of this sin!
There are those in our world today who will tell you that YOU can do something about your sin… that YOU can do good things to overcome your sin. They paint a picture of a great scale where YOUR good works… if you do enough… will outweigh your sin and disobedience.
Most world religions today teach that to obtain forgiveness of sin, that YOU can do good deeds and then God will favor them… but in the Bible we see a totally different picture painted by God.
The Bible reveals that sin separated humanity from God in the Garden shortly after the creation. The Bible reveals humanity being cast out and cursed with a sinful nature that would be part of who they are…
The Bible reveals that there is NOTHING we can do to rid ourselves of the sin nature that is in our hearts and that is the cause behind our sinful behavior and disobedience.
The Bible reveals that WE can NEVER cleanse ourselves of this sinful nature. The Bible paints picture of gloom for humanity. In fact like v.6 in Isaiah tells us… 6We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way;
Sheep out on their own are simply going to be hunted down by the predators. They have NO defensive capabilities and no sense of direction to return to safety. Sheep only seek that next blade of juicy grass… to fill their stomachs. Sheep cannot recognize danger and are vulnerable to any predator… sheep NOT led by a shepherd are doomed to destruction.
The Bible paints a grim picture for humanity… HOWEVER, God has NOT abandoned His creation and God has a plan…God has ALWAYS had a plan of redemption for His creation.
You see, God always knew we would sin, He knew we would fall and He knew we would need salvation from the sinful hearts we all have… So God provided a plan… God provided Jesus. And this is where we come to our Scripture today…
18There they crucified Him, and with Him two others, one on either side, and Jesus between them.
Jesus stepped out of heaven and all heavenly royalty and glory… Jesus accepted the role of Sacrificial Lamb for the sake of His Creation. God wrapped Himself in flesh and came in the person of Jesus to live as an example revealing God’s love, and to die as a ransom for the souls of God’s creation.
Sin’s curse is a penalty too high for us to pay, but the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the Cross of Calvary… is a sufficient price to redeem Humanity back to God. That is why we call story of Jesus the Good News! Jesus is the Good News that God has made a way for us to be rid of the sin nature that separates us from Him!
Jesus died on the Cross of Calvary so that our sin could be forgiven. Today is what we call Palm Sunday… traditionally this is a day where most churches celebrate the Triumphant entrance into Jerusalem by Jesus… it marks the beginning of what many call Holy Week.
However, today I am NOT going to speak of Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem. Today I am NOT going to speak about how Jesus was adored and worshiped as He entered the city… today I am here to share with you that Jesus died for your sin… and this coming week we are going to be celebrating Communion at our Good Friday service…
Communion or the Lord’s Supper is a symbolic remembrance of the death of Jesus as our sacrifice… what Jesus did for us so that we could be forgiven of our sin… what Jesus did for us so that we could know eternal life… Jesus pain the price so that we could once again commune with our Creator!
Friday we will be celebrating that sacrificial act on His part… but Scripture is very clear to us that celebrating that time… celebrating that event… taking part in such an act in an unworthy manner is accursed and brings God’s judgment down upon us!
Today I want us to begin to prepare our hearts and minds so that when we walk in those doors this coming Friday evening at 6pm we will be ready to celebrate the Table of the Lord.
Ok preacher, what are you talking about? I know all about the Lord’s supper… I know all about what He has done for me… what do I have to do to ‘prepare’ for the Lord’s supper?
Far too often we come casually into God’s presence to celebrate the Lord’s Table. This is NOT something that is to be taken casually… Can you imagine where we would be if Jesus had been ‘casual’ in His obedience to the Father?
This is solemn and holy observance of what God has done for us in the person of Jesus Christ.
This is an observation of the mighty sacrifice that Jesus made because we were not able to make it ourselves.
This is an observation that allows us to look back with thankful hearts and look ahead with baited anticipation in seeing the Savior who has cleansed and forgiven us from our sin!
This is a celebration in which your heart and soul must be in the right place with God… if it is NOT, you risk the wrath of God coming down upon you here in this world…
In his letter to the Corinthian church Paul tells us that those who were celebrating this event in a casual and less than reverent and prepared manner… they were those who were suffering… Paul lists several problems of those who had celebrated this event with an unworthy heart:
29For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves. 30That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep.
This is a stern warning from Paul that when we come together to remember and celebrate what Christ has done for our redemption… that we come with a prepared heart.
Ok preacher, I get it… but what do I need to do to prepare?
Well, I want you to know that what I am about to share with you is NOT Bro. Bobby’s special preparations for coming to the Lord’s Table… but it is God’s preparation of our hearts so that we can be worthy to come to His table and commune with Him…
WHO SHOULD PARTAKE?
Before we can begin to prepare our hearts to commune with God at the Table of the Lord… we have to know who can come.
Now I want to make a distinction here on who CAN come and who is invited TO come… because there is a difference. God has issued a blanket invitation for all to come to Him… all to accept Him… the invitation is there…
But, the only ones who can actually come to the table of the Lord are those who have accepted invitation. When we accept Christ into our lives… when we profess Him as Savior of our souls… THIS is when we are able to sit at the Table of the Lord and commune with God.
Have you accepted Christ today? Christ is knocking at your heart’s door today and wants to come in… He is offering God’s mercy… forgiveness for sins where you deserve punishment… He is offering God’s grace… eternal life and deliverance from eternal punishment… he is offering God’s eternal presence in the eternal life in heaven.
But he will not force this upon you but he desires you to make the choice to accept what He has provided… to accept His invitation to become His child. Before you can come to the Lord’s Table you have to be part of the family… God has provided the invitation for you to join the family… have you accepted?
Confess Sin
The second step… this is one every believer must take on a daily basis, but we often take for granted. So many of us allow sinful behavior to ‘pile up’ in our lives without confessing it to God and asking forgiveness. God has told us in His word that if we confess our sin he is faithful to forgive and cleanse us…
Parents think about this for a moment…before any meal what is it that we tell our children. “Go wash up…” We don’t want them coming to the table with dirty hands or faces… God doesn’t want us coming to His table in an unclean manner either!
Confession of our sin is a spiritual washing of our lives… a cleansing of the soul so that we are clean and presentable to come to the table of the Lord.
Confession of sin can be a tricky thing for humanity because we tend to look at the sin of others before we EVER see the sin in our lives… that is why we must be willing to confess ALL sin.
You need to take a spiritual inventory of your life before you come to the Lord’s Table. This inventory must look at things like:
Sin that seems to creep into your life and you have not surrendered it to Christ
A relationship that is broken where you have not tried to reconcile it… we are called to the ministry of reconciliation and it does not matter where the fault lies in the problem… the reconciliation begins with YOU! Do you have a relationship what is hurting and broken that needs to be reconciled?
Maybe you are allowing your past to keep God at a distance? Have you surrendered all to Him?
It could be that you are focused on the wrong things in life. Are you focused more on the ‘things’ of this world rather than your walk with God? You need to have your spiritual walk in the proper priority before you come to the Lord’s Table…
Unbelief in God’s sovereign nature
Wrong motives for serving and being obedient
A life without intimacy with God… a life without prayer
Apathy and carelessness about service within the body
Outright disobedience of that which you know God has called you to do
Have you experienced a moral failure in your life?
Are you prideful in your attitude and heart?
Are you living a life that is simply TOO busy for God?
All of these things are things that are SIN… all of these things separate us from God! If we have any of these things in our life… if we have ANYTHING in our life that comes between us and our relationship with God… it is sin and it needs to be removed… it needs to be cleansed… it needs to be washed away!
Before we come to the Lord’s Table we need to ‘wash up’ spiritually and we do that by going to the Lord and confessing our sin… whatever that sin may be. But it is more than a passing prayer in the privacy of our own home… in being prepared to sit at the Lord’s Table we must be willing to let our confession be lived out…
Is there something between you and a brother or a sister in our fellowship? We are called to the ministry of reconciliation and YOU are called to go to them and make whatever it is…right. It could be that you need to ask forgiveness from them for something you have done, but you have not. It could be that you need to OFFER forgiveness TO them for something they have done… We need to go to them!
Prepare our hearts and minds:
Preacher you said confession prepared us… what else do we need to do? Confession of sin and reconciliation of relationships is great, but we must be ready to sit at the Table of our Lord. Preparing our hearts and minds involves a complete and holistic effort on our part to be ready for this event.
Reading the Bible faithfully brings us into a intimate knowledge of God and brings us closer to Him and His promises… are you in the Word? If not, start today! I suggest you start at John 14 and read thru the end of John by Friday… these passages will help you to prepare your heart for what Christ has done… to prepare your heart to partake of the Lord’s table.
Consistent and faithful prayer… Prayer is our way of ‘talking’ to God. But prayer is NOT for God, but it is FOR us. Prayer brings us into an intimate place with God. Knowing that we can come into His presence and bring our prayer to Him…knowing that He is there and listening… this establishes that close relationship needed to come to the Lord’s Table… Are you praying like you should?
Paul teaches us that we should pray without ceasing… that means be in an attitude of prayer all the time… what about you? In your heart… is it in a constant attitude of prayer? If not, I suggest that you hit your knees this week… seek out that intimate time with God… this will help to prepare your heart and mind for coming to the Lord’s table.
Physical Actions
Coming to Christ, Confessing sin, reconciling with others, being in the Word, being in prayer… what else is there preacher?
There are physical reminders and acts that we can do that help us to keep our focus on God. Jesus instructs His followers to focus on God first and the other things of life will be provided.
I believe we allow the ‘other things of life’ to be far too important and that we try to fit God into our lives rather than our focus being directed toward God and believing and trusting that God will provide…
One example that I know I struggle with is the physical act of FASTING… Fasting is often thought of by looking at what Jesus did just before He was tempted… but fasting does not mean you have to go 40 days without food.
Fasting is giving up something physical so that you can replace it and focus on something of Christ! Fasting from food, which is our physical food and reading our Bible which is our spiritual food is one way of fasting.
Some choose to do this one meal a day… one entire day in the week… or more than that. But however, you choose to fast… it must be done in the attitude of reverence and focus on Christ!
Fasting can also be manifested in other areas, such as taking your personal recreation time and giving it to God in Bible study or prayer!
Fasting is not a requirement to come to the Lord’s table, but it is a step we can all take to help us to focus on what is important so that our hearts will be ready to partake of the Lord’s table.
What have we learned today?
We have read about Jesus giving His life on the Cross of Calvary… FOR ALL!
We have seen that He did this because there was NOTHING we could do to help us in our sinful state!
We have also seen that Jesus called all His disciples to remember what He did on the Cross and that Paul detailed that our hearts must be in the right place before we should partake in that special remembrance of what Christ has done…
Spiritually speaking we are called to ‘wash up’ before stepping to the Lord’s table. The term ‘wash up’ is a term that means we need to have our hearts right when we approach the table of the Lord. Are you ready to sit at the table this morning… I would dare say not many of you are… but this morning I want us to have the opportunity to do just that…
I am going to open this altar for those who are seeking Jesus… those who have never made a profession of faith. I call on you to hear the voice of Jesus in your heart and respond in faith to accept His invitation to come into the family!
As Bro Ken comes to lead us in our hymn of invitation I call on members here today… come and pray… come and confess… come and make things right with God… come and begin to prepare your hearts to celebrate the Lord’s Supper on Friday night… won’t you come as Bro Ken leads us…
