Fellowship With God

Grace Covenant Reformed Church

Subscribe

Download

Share

00

00:03

Last week we came to the conclusion of the instructions regarding the sacrifices and the offerings that God commanded the people, or that he commanded

00:33

Moses and the priesthood to go through in order to consecrate and ordain

00:39

Aaron and his sons into the priesthood, to prepare them for the work that was then set before them as they ministered to God in the tabernacle.

00:57

As we closed out last week, not only had God completed this action of ordaining and consecrating, but God had also provided a perpetual provision for the priests, a portion, to see after their care as they completed their work within the tabernacle and then later the temple.

01:27

In the next few verses we are going to see that not only has God provided the priest with a portion, but that he also has provided for the future of the priesthood and then the agreement or covenant that occurs between God and Aaron and Aaron's sons regarding their priesthood and then ratified with a meal of fellowship.

02:00

You may recall in our earlier work, as we have moved through Exodus, that at the completion of the giving of the law,

02:10

God instituted a covenant or he cut a covenant with his people whereby he agreed together with his people and we witnessed the adoption or the ratification of that covenant in Exodus chapter 24.

02:28

In Exodus 24 verse 11 we read these words, yet he did not stretch out his hand against the nobles of the sons of Israel and they beheld

02:36

God and they ate and they drank. We looked at how this fellowship meal served as a time in which

02:46

God communed with his people and they with him signifying that both parties understood the requirements of the covenant that they were entering into and that they were all agreeing to those.

03:02

Specifically being that the one true God would be their

03:09

God and that as their God they would obey him because they were his people and be obedient again to all that he had commanded them.

03:23

Now as we work through our text this morning this will be an important event for you to keep in mind as it helps to understand what's occurring in the text today.

03:38

But there's another event that also has an impact on not only the text today but also our understanding of how that text relates to us here this morning.

03:57

That event is found in the pages of Exodus 12 and 13 and it is the feast of the

04:08

Passover and unleavened bread. Now as we studied this you may recall that this feast was that feast which

04:19

God commanded the Israelites to take part of just prior to leaving or being released from Egypt.

04:28

It occurred the evening before the angel of death was to pass through the land of Egypt and the firstborn sons of the

04:39

Egyptians would pay for their disobedience. As we went through this we talked about how the

04:50

Passover, a feast still celebrated even today, but was the same feast or festival that was happening on the night prior to Christ's crucifixion.

05:07

Part of the preparation for the Passover even today includes the singing of a set of Psalms known as the

05:17

Hillel Psalms. For our sake this is

05:22

Psalms 113 through 118. These Psalms when you read them together take the individual on a journey.

05:33

It begins with an acknowledgment of who God is.

05:40

It continues with a praise for what he has done in releasing the

05:46

Israelites in bondage in Egypt. For us it would be releasing us from the bondage of sin in our life.

05:54

It contains a desire to give him and him alone all of the glory, a profession of love and adoration of God, and praise for his loving kindness.

06:10

In the final Psalm 118 we see not only this profession of God's loving kindness, but we also see a transition that I think is important as we prepare to study our text for today.

06:29

So in Psalm 118 we read the following words. Give thanks to Yahweh for he is good, for his loving kindness endures forever.

06:43

Oh let Israel say his loving kindness endures forever. Oh let the house of Aaron say his loving kindness endures forever.

06:52

Oh let those who fear Yahweh say his loving kindness endures forever. For my distress

07:00

I called upon Yah. Yah answered me and set me in a large place.

07:08

Yahweh is for me. I will not fear. What can man do to me?

07:17

Yahweh is for me among those who help me. Therefore I will look and triumph on those who hate me.

07:25

It is better to take refuge in Yahweh than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in Yahweh than to trust in nobles.

07:31

All the nations surrounded me. In the name of Yahweh I will surely cut them off.

07:38

They surrounded me. Indeed they surrounded me. In the name of Yahweh I will surely cut them off. They surrounded me like bees.

07:45

They were extinguished as a fire of thorns. In the name of Yahweh I will surely cut them off.

07:54

You pushed me down violently to make me fall but Yahweh helped me. Yah is my strength and song.

08:03

He has become my salvation. The sound of joyful shouting and salvation is in the tents of the righteous.

08:10

The right hand of Yahweh does valiantly. The right hand of Yahweh is exalted. The right hand of Yahweh does valiantly.

08:21

I will not die. Indeed I will live and recount the works of Yah.

08:28

Yah has disciplined me severely but he has not given me over to death. Open to me the gates of righteousness.

08:35

I shall enter through them and I shall give thanks to Yah. This is the gate of Yahweh.

08:41

The righteous will enter through it. I should give thanks to you for you have answered me and you have become my salvation.

08:50

The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.

08:57

This is from Yahweh. It is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day which Yahweh has made.

09:02

Let us rejoice and be glad in it. Oh Yahweh save.

09:09

Oh Yahweh succeed. Blessed is the one who came comes in the name of Yahweh.

09:16

We have blessed you from the house of Yahweh. Yahweh is God and he has given us light.

09:22

Bind the festival sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar. You are my God and I give thanks to you.

09:28

You are my God I exalt you. Give thanks to Yahweh for he is good.

09:36

For his loving -kindness endures forever. Among the closing lines and the final verses of that particular psalm there should seem language that should be very familiar with you or to you as we deal many of them deal with the consummation of the plan of redemption moving forward in the coming of our

10:01

Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Now as we have moved through much of the later parts of the book of Exodus we have talked much about types and shadows.

10:15

This morning is no different as we discover the type or the shadow that are included in the fellowship meal between God and the priests and bring these great truths of scripture that are revealed in both the earlier text from Exodus and how they tie into Psalms that are sung in preparation for the

10:33

Passover. All of these things bring us to our text for this morning.

10:41

As we have been doing in the past weeks we will again look to the instructional text found in Exodus chapter 29 and also the obedience text found in Leviticus 8.

10:54

In Leviticus 8 we will read verses 31 and 32 but over in Exodus 29 where we will begin we will start by reading verses 29 through 34 together.

11:06

If you will please place your finger and at Leviticus turn to Exodus 29 and stand for the reading of God's holy, inerrant, infallible, authoritative, sufficient, and complete word.

11:23

Exodus chapter 29 beginning in the 29th verse we read these words.

11:29

The holy garments of Aaron shall be for his sons after him that in them they may be anointed and ordained.

11:39

For seven days the one of his sons who is priest in his stead shall put them on when he comes into the tent of meeting to minister in the holy place.

11:49

You shall take the ram of ordination and boil its flesh in a holy place.

11:54

Aaron and his son shall eat the flesh of the ram and the bread that is in the basket at the doorway of the tent of meeting.

12:04

Thus they shall eat those things by which atonement was made to ordain them to set them apart as holy.

12:14

But a layman shall not eat them because they are holy.

12:22

If any of the flesh of ordination or any of the bread remains until morning then you shall burn the remainder with fire.

12:30

It shall not be eaten because it is holy. When we turn to Leviticus chapter 8 reading verses 31 and 32 we find these words.

12:43

Then Moses said to Aaron and to his sons boil the flesh at the doorway of the tent of meeting and eat it there together with the bread which is in the basket of the ordination offering just as I commanded saying

12:57

Aaron and his son shall eat it and the remainder of the flesh and of the bread you shall burn it in the fire.

13:05

Let us pray. Our prayer this morning comes from the Valley of Vision.

13:11

Praise and thanksgiving. Almighty God you oh

13:19

Lord are the fairest and the greatest and the creator of all things.

13:28

Our hearts admire, adore, and love you.

13:36

Though our hearts are small in comparison to you they are as full as they can be and we would pour out all that is in them in ceaseless praise before you.

13:47

When we think upon and converse with you there are 10 ,000 delightful thoughts that spring up, 10 ,000 sources of pleasure that are unsealed, and 10 ,000 refreshing joys spread over the hearts and crowding into every moment of happiness.

14:12

We bless you almighty God for the souls that you have created, that you have not abandoned those souls but rather adorned them and sanctified them even when they are rooted in the most barren of soil.

14:29

We bless you for the bodies that you have given us for preserving its strength and vigor, for providing senses to enjoy delights, for the ease and freedom of our limbs, for hands, eyes, and ears that do your work, for the royal bounty of our daily provisions both a cup and a table that are overflowing, for appetite, for taste, for sweetness, for social joys of family and friends, for the ability to serve others, for hearts that feel sorrow and need, for a mind to care for our fellow men and women, for opportunities to spread happiness, for our loved ones who are already experiencing the joys of heaven, for our own expectations and ability to see you clearly.

15:25

Father we love you more than words can say. For what you are to those who you have created.

15:35

Increase our love, oh Lord, through all time and eternity. Father we ask all of these things in the name of our

15:43

Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. You may be seated.

15:49

One of the benefits that we enjoy here today on this side of Christ's redemptive work is the opportunity to look back and see how the words of God given to Moses and to the

16:05

Israelites had a far greater impact and far greater truths being expressed than what they were able to see at that time.

16:17

Verses 29 and 30 are great examples of this. You see for the

16:24

Israelite and for Moses and for Aaron and Aaron's sons, verses 29 and 30 demonstrate this provision of a high priest in perpetuity, meaning for all time.

16:42

So this was wonderful for them because it meant that God would always give his people a priest to serve in the role of mediator between God and man.

16:56

For the Israelites this was the lineage of Aaron, ultimately the Levitical lineage that would lead to the

17:04

Levitical priesthood. However for us here this morning this promise speaks to something much greater.

17:17

It is a promise that still holds true, but it is a promise that because of the beauty of God's plan no longer depends upon a high priest that is standing on the shoulders of those who have come before him.

17:38

If you'll notice in verse 29 in this passage that the holy garments are what was demonstrative of their right and ability to serve within the tabernacle and the temple.

17:57

Even when taking on the garments of the high priest who went before them and even when their service was temporary.

18:06

We know that as the years passed the role of serving high priests was rotated.

18:13

In the day of Aaron, in the immediate days to follow, we see Israel as being given one singular high priest.

18:21

As the nation grew we see this change occur whereby they would cast lots.

18:28

Luke records this for us in Luke 1, 8 and 9 as it describes the reason that Zechariah himself was in the temple when he received the angel of the

18:38

Lord visiting him proclaiming the birth of John the Baptist. We read these words, now it happened that while he,

18:45

Zechariah, was performing his priestly service before God in the order of his division, according to the custom of the priestly office, he was chosen by lot to enter the sanctuary of the

18:55

Lord and burn incense. So at this point in Zechariah's life he is having the privilege of serving as the high priest.

19:03

One of the things this demonstrates for us is that one, the high priesthood, just as God declares in verses 29 and 30 of Exodus, is a perpetual thing that will happen.

19:16

It also shifted over time and it became less about the specific individuals.

19:25

In the letter to the Hebrews, we read in Hebrews 1, 1 through 3, God having spoken long ago to the fathers and the prophets in many portions and in many ways in these last days spoke to us in his son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also made the worlds, who is the radiance of his glory and the exact representation of his nature, and upholds all things by the word of his power, who having accomplished cleansing for sins, sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high.

19:59

Now obviously there are a lot of things in Hebrews 1, 1 through 3 to be unpacked, but this morning

20:05

I specifically want you to notice the accomplishment of Christ and where he went.

20:13

Having accomplished the cleansing of sins, Jesus now sitting at the right hand of the father became the one true mediator between God and man, serving in the presence of the father as our great high priest.

20:31

And just as he promised Israel through the words that he gave to Moses that they would never be without a representative, so too do we stand on this side understanding that we shall never be without a representative.

20:48

God the son stands in the throne room of the father serving as the high priest, the great high priest of his people.

21:07

Earlier I mentioned that the ratification of the covenant that took place between God and his people happened after the giving of the law.

21:20

And if you'll recall these events, immediately following the giving of the law and this ratification, there was this fellowship meal.

21:32

After this fellowship meal, Moses is then recalled up the mountain Sinai where God writes the

21:39

Ten Commandments on the stone tablets and then immediately proceeds to instruct

21:45

Moses regarding the construction of the tabernacle and the institution of the priesthood.

21:53

Chapters 25 through 30, where we have been laboring, contain for us those passages instructing the construction of the tabernacle and the institution of the priesthood.

22:10

Within those passages, what we see time and again is the continual use of covenantal language.

22:22

Now you're gonna have to bear with me for a few minutes this morning in this message because we have some technical things that we need to deal with in order to have a good understanding of what is occurring.

22:35

So what we mean when we say that there is this continual use of covenantal language is that we continually see these commands of God with the reminders of the promise of God.

22:48

For example, as God gives the commands that are to be obeyed, there is a promised result from these obedience to these commands.

22:57

You build the tabernacle, I will dwell in it. You ordain the priesthood, they will serve me and minister for me on your behalf, bringing to me the atonement and the sacrifices so that we can have fellowship one with another.

23:16

It is that through the ordinary man, the ordinary man that was used in the priesthood,

23:25

God chose and set apart these men for a specific work, the work of ministering before him in the tabernacle, the work of performing the sacrifices, carrying the burden of the sins of the people before God, resulting in God's acceptance of these sacrifices if his commands were properly obeyed.

23:53

Now, an example of a time when his commands were not obeyed and the disastrous results can be found later in the account of Aaron's sons,

24:09

Ahab and Nebuchadnezzar, in which they offered strange fire before the

24:15

Lord and immediately met with death.

24:22

And so as we come now in verses 31 through 34, to the culmination of the ordaining ceremony, what we are seeing is another, although it is a much smaller ceremony, that ratifies this covenant or confirms this covenant between God and the priest regarding the priesthood.

24:57

Now, before we move forward, we need to be sure that we understand the terms and conditions of this covenant.

25:09

It is that God provides a man to stand in this role and other men to serve in the role of the ordinary priest, that they were to be taken through this process that we have just finished talking about of consecration and ordination, and that as they're taken through this, then they would be properly prepared.

25:36

And then if they obeyed the commands given regarding all of the things that God has taught us so far about the tabernacle, about the priesthood, about the clothing, about the sacrifices, but if they obeyed these commands that God promises to accept their work as sufficient to atone for the sins of the people and to bring them into fellowship with God.

26:02

Now, that's an important aspect of what's happening. These men are serving in these roles, although they're called and set apart by God, declared holy through the work of consecration, having their hands filled or ordained with the work that was set before them, were certainly not perfect.

26:24

We see that demonstrated in the fact that they will continually have to offer sacrifices of atonement, first for themselves and then for the people.

26:36

Notice in verse 34, there's an interesting statement here.

26:41

It says, if any of the flesh of ordination or any of the bread remains until morning, you shall burn the remainder with fire.

26:51

It shall not be eaten because it is holy.

26:58

Now, this interesting command exists not because the food had become unclean or the food had become defiled, but it forces a question.

27:14

What changed? Why could the food no longer be consumed?

27:22

Certainly the flesh was holy when the men consumed it the day before. Certainly it did not, because the text tells us it did not, lose its holiness.

27:35

It literally says at the very end of verse 34, it shall not be eaten because it is holy.

27:45

The answer lies in the status change, however, of the priests themselves.

27:55

And this is an important fact that we need to keep in mind. Remember, these are men. Daily, they are called to offer an atonement for their sins.

28:09

And so, even though the role of priesthood had been declared holy, even though the role of high priest and the role of the ordinary priest had been declared as set apart and as holy by God the men filling the roles are still sinful creatures.

28:30

This helps demonstrate for us the pervasiveness of the sin nature in our own lives and the insufficiency of the sacrificial system.

28:40

The overall image, however, that we should see here in this fellowship meal is that the lesser covenant between God and the priesthood is being ratified and or confirmed.

28:59

So what? That's the question, right? So what? So what does this have to do with me in 2025?

29:08

How does a bunch of old priests sitting down eating boiled ram in the doorway of the tent of meeting affect me today?

29:16

And what in the world does the Passover have to do with any of it? I'm so glad you thought that question and decided to ask it.

29:27

One of the truths that we see regarding meals following covenant language throughout the

29:34

Old Testament is that they are serving as celebratory acts whereby the people of God are celebrating the work of God in their lives.

29:48

As we look back over the institution of the Passover, at the heart of that meal was a celebration for what

29:55

God was about to do each subsequent time that the Passover was observed.

30:01

It was a celebratory act that served to remind the people of God what he had done for them in delivering them from the bondage in the land of Egypt.

30:10

Even today when Jewish people gather and celebrate the Passover, they are celebrating their deliverance from Egypt.

30:17

Sadly enough, however, they are also looking forward to the time when the

30:22

Messiah would come. And it's sad because he has come and they missed it.

30:34

John 1 11, John writes, says he came to what was his own and those who were his own did not receive him.

30:48

They still celebrate, but they celebrate the wrong thing.

30:54

In each of the feasts that celebrate the work of God in the lives of his people, the consummation of flesh of the sacrifice represents communion or fellowship between God and his people.

31:10

Part of the flesh was burnt and consumed by God on the altar, part of the flesh was consumed by the people and we shared.

31:21

Note verse 33, the final clause of that passage in verse 33, it says, but a layman shall not eat of them because they are holy.

31:35

Now the term that is translated layman here literally is translated stranger and in this passage it is specifically speaking to those not of the priesthood.

31:47

So it was actually including in this passage, this is why we use the word layman versus stranger, even the sons of Israel.

31:54

So a standard everyday Israelite, a chosen person of God could not come up and consume this meal because they were not of the priesthood.

32:05

However, what this does do is point forward in the larger context of the festivals and feasts to the fact that it's not anyone who is not of the people of God.

32:21

For us today, this would be an unbeliever and so only those who are of the people of God should be partaking of the feasts and festivals of God.

32:40

So we have this picture before us of a feast taking place in which God and his people are in fellowship or communion with one another as a celebratory act that either demonstrates that a covenant has been ratified or celebrating a covenant between God and his people.

32:57

And so what I want you to do as we continue to press forward this morning is to keep that image in front of you, gathered together in the upper room of a home in the city of Jerusalem, Christ and his disciples celebrated the

33:23

Passover together. These men, all of them, celebrating

33:34

Passover after Passover after Passover throughout their lives, but this

33:40

Passover would be different. This one would be like unlike any

33:48

Passover they had ever been a part of because it was going to forever alter history.

34:01

Many of us know the story. The meal comes to a close.

34:08

Jesus and his disciples are reclining as Luke describes it.

34:16

And although each of the four gospels actually includes an account of this, one of the gospels is a little different and doesn't necessarily have a specific narrative, rather it alludes to these events.

34:32

But I want to look for just a few minutes at Luke's version,

34:38

Luke's retelling. In Luke's gospel we find these words, beginning in the 22nd chapter of the 14th verse.

34:51

And when the hour had come, he reclined at the table and the apostles with him.

34:59

And he said to them, I have earnestly desired to eat this

35:04

Passover with you before I suffer. For I say to you, I shall never again eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.

35:15

And when he had taken a cup and given thanks, he said, take this and share it among yourselves.

35:23

For I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until the kingdom of God comes.

35:30

And when he had taken some bread and given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them saying, this is my body, which is given for you.

35:43

Do this in remembrance of me. And in the same way, he took the cup after they had eaten saying, this cup, which is poured out for you, is the new covenant in my blood.

36:02

Note very carefully, pay very close attention to Jesus' words in verse 20, the new covenant.

36:19

This is language that is essential to the believer's true understanding of what's happening over and over within the

36:37

Old Testament, specifically repeated throughout the prophets. We see this concept of a new covenant.

36:50

And now, seated around this table with his disciples,

36:56

Jesus looks at each one of them and speaks not only just of this new covenant, but you'll notice that he institutes a meal of remembrance to celebrate that covenant.

37:16

You see, so often, we look at the Lord's Supper as just one of those things that we're supposed to do, and we miss the fact that it is a celebratory action whereby the people of God celebrating the provision of God whereby we are brought into fellowship or communion with him through the work of Christ on Calvary's cross.

37:47

In fact, in the modern church, it is fair to say that if the

37:56

Lord's Supper is recognized, it is done so in a manner simply to check off the box and say that we have done what we have been commanded to do.

38:17

We relegate it to the end of a service where oftentimes it gets less time than a popular song does, where within a matter of just a few moments, it has come and gone.

38:40

The truth, though, the truth of what we see prescribed or given for us as a command in Scripture is something much, much different, and it begins with a proper understanding of the feasts and festivals of the

39:06

Old Testament and why they were celebrating. This is why we took the time to labor through that conversation.

39:15

But on top of that, if we look just at this feast that we've looked at in Exodus, this meal that occurs between the priests and God, we see that there is much we can learn about the way in which we should approach the

39:37

Lord's table. I mentioned earlier that next week, we will be observing the

39:42

Lord's Supper. This gives you a whole week to think through exactly what we're fixing to talk about so that you are fully prepared in your heart as you come before his table.

39:56

You see, the first thing that we see demonstrated for us is preparation. Oftentimes, as we gather together as the people of God, we don't think about that we need to come prepared even for normal worship, but certainly when we are going to be observing the

40:19

Lord's Supper. Now, I don't mean when

40:25

I talk about preparation the manner in which the meat is prepared.

40:33

Preparation that I am referring to actually began truly before the foundation of the world.

40:44

You see, foundationally, we have to see that all of the instructions of God were instituted before the first thing was created.

40:58

There is not an accident. This is not a response to something that has occurred because God didn't expect it, and the danger of reducing our thought process to anything other than it starting there is a reduction to the sovereignty of God.

41:24

That's the preparation in a broad sense. In a narrow sense, however, we need look no further than Exodus.

41:33

Think for just a moment what has led up to this moment. Now, we could go all the way back, right?

41:40

We could talk about all of it, but just limit your thought to the instructions regarding the construction of the tabernacle, and the instructions regarding the clothing of the priesthood, and the instructions regarding the process by which these men were to be consecrated and ordained.

41:57

Everything was prepared to lead to this moment, and yet we come to the

42:06

Lord's table unprepared. Everything, everything leading up served a purpose.

42:17

Every action taught the people something. All of these things coming together so that as the priests consumed this meal in the presence of God at the doorway of the tent of meeting, the last thing they were concerned about was how the food tasted.

42:35

In preparation for this, I ran across several commentaries that wanted to concern themselves with how this food was prepared.

42:47

In fact, they went so far as to say, oh, well, the word boiling here doesn't actually limit itself to just boiling.

42:53

It could be boiling with taking it out and then putting a finished touch on the grill, and I think to do that, to go to that place generates an issue because, you see,

43:08

I think that places it back on us because it's about us and how we would feel about consuming just boiled meat.

43:23

We think it needs to be seasoned. We think it needs to be flavored. We think it needs to be palatable.

43:29

But these men were so in awe of what God had done for them that they had seen the costs of the sin.

43:39

They had seen the provision that was being made. Their only concern was the response of service.

43:54

Christ, God delivers not only this provision, but that the priesthood remain for future generations.

44:06

So when we come to the Lord's table, do we really think about the preparation that went into the opportunity to celebrate?

44:20

I'm not talking about the action of putting all the little cups in the tray and squirting the juice in or wine, whatever you want to use, into each one of the little cups and cutting up the bread or pouring out the crackers, whatever you're using.

44:35

We're talking about the redemptive art of scripture, the preparation moving us from one point in history as fallen, broken, sinful creatures who were at enmity with God to a place where we now have been reconciled.

45:04

And we think about the sins that Christ paid for on Calvary's cross.

45:14

The truth that God has not only provided for our daily needs, but for our eternal needs.

45:22

Reconciling us to himself, exalting Christ to the right hand of the

45:29

Father so that he continually serves as our great high priest.

45:40

So firstly, as we prepare, we remember that there is a lot of preparation that we should properly prepare in coming to the table.

45:54

We don't just show up, wash our hands, and say let's eat. Secondly, notice that this celebration takes place in a holy place.

46:12

In Exodus, Moses commands them in verse 31 or God commands them through Moses in verse 31 to take the ram of ordination and boil its flesh in a holy place.

46:22

In Leviticus, Leviticus 8 31 helps us to understand that this holy place that God had in mind is the holy place in the doorway of the tent of meeting.

46:32

Remember, this whole ceremony has taken place on the threshold of this doorway.

46:40

The doorway that once they are fully consecrated, once the fellowship meal has been consumed, the covenant has been ratified, they can step into and minister.

46:53

Now, the place is holy not because of the piece of dirt where it stands.

47:03

The place is holy because of the presence of God, because it has been set apart by him for his purposes.

47:11

There's nothing specially inherent. In fact, the tabernacle itself was made to move from point to point to point. As these people move, you don't think they put it in the exact same spot every time they got somewhere, do you?

47:23

If that was the case, we could still go to the Holy Land today, try and reenact the and find places that were literally holy ground simply because the tabernacle had once stood there.

47:39

It was not the location that mattered. It was the presence of Almighty God.

47:50

Remember Moses? Early on in Exodus, we studied

47:55

Moses. We saw him flee into the wilderness after he killed the Egyptian. And after he had been in the wilderness for 40 years, he looks over, he sees a mountain.

48:04

And on the mountain, there's this bush that's being burned. And so he goes over to investigate. He finds out the bush, not only is the bush on fire, it's not actually on fire.

48:11

It's being consumed, but not being consumed. And as he approaches, the word of Yahweh comes from the bush, says to him,

48:22

Moses, remove your shoes for the place you're standing is holy ground. Before God's presence was there, it was not holy ground.

48:32

After God's presence left, it was not holy ground. But while God was present in the moment, it was holy ground.

48:42

The buildings that we gather and worship in are not in and of themselves holy.

48:50

They are a building. They are a building that serves a purpose. But as we come together, as the people of God come together for the presence of God, God's presence enters the place in a special way, then they become holy.

49:14

Now, we find this difficult to process because we talk a lot about God's omnipresence, and God is always present.

49:24

But as his people come together, there is a special thing that occurs when the people of God gather for the purpose of worshiping

49:33

God rightly. The other thing that we should understand is that each individual believer is indwelt by the

49:47

Holy Spirit and being dwelt within, setting apart us as holy.

49:55

This is part of what is occurring. As we are sanctified and prepared, we are commanded, be holy, for I am holy.

50:08

It's no wonder that when Paul wrote about the Lord's Supper to the Corinthian church, who was using it as something much different than what it was intended to be, he writes to them in verses 27 through 29 of chapter 11 of 1

50:23

Corinthians, therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner shall be guilty of the body and of the blood of the

50:31

Lord. But a man must test himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup, for he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly.

50:50

Part of the preparation that we are supposed to undergo is this evaluation of ourselves, and that as we evaluate ourselves, we are to come to the table and be prepared.

51:05

But we should also understand that as we come to the table to be prepared, that we are in a holy situation, a time set apart by God for communion with His people.

51:15

We are celebrating our deliverance from bondage. The difference between us and the

51:23

Israelites is while they were celebrating a physical deliverance from a temporary situation, we are celebrating a spiritual deliverance from an eternal situation, a situation that leads to an existence where if we are not delivered, we would endure the ceaseless wrath of God in that outer place of darkness where there is but weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth.

52:00

Thirdly, the actual consummation of the bread and the wine or juice, serving as the body and blood of the sacrifice which made atonement on our behalf.

52:21

Look for a moment at verse 33. Verse 33 begins with the words, thus they shall eat the flesh or them things, those things by which atonement was made to ordain them.

52:43

They were to consume the things that had been used to ordain them, to set them apart.

52:54

Now if you will for just a minute recall that the whole process of what's happening in front of these priests just moments before they had laid their hands on the head of this animal, acknowledging it as their substitute, that it took their place, that it took the punishment that was required from them only to find a short time later consuming the very same animal, one that gave his life or its life for theirs.

53:42

As I mentioned a few moments ago, there were several theologians that I ran across that tried to make this meat more palatable, and it was just a nagging thing to me to begin with.

53:56

It just felt like there's something wrong with the statement that they're making. And eventually

54:02

I came to the point where I realized what was causing the concern was that this is focusing on the wrong thing.

54:09

Again, it focuses, shifts the focus of the sacrifice away from the meat, away from what had occurred, away from this meal to us.

54:23

But what's happening here, the point of this consummation, the point that they were to turn around and then consume the flesh of this animal and this bread was to internalize exactly what had transpired, to recognize the price that was paid for them.

54:48

Listen, when we come to the

54:54

Lord's table, it's not about the quality of the juice or the wine, the tastiness of the bread.

55:09

It's not about whether it is a nice, soft, pillowy bread or whether it is a styrofoam wafer.

55:17

What it is about is what these elements represent.

55:25

As we prepare and as we go through the process of the Lord's Supper, we talk about the elements.

55:32

We talk about how the bread represents the body, the juice, the wine represents the blood.

55:44

But I wonder how often we really think about and have this image of what that truly means.

55:58

Do we really see the bread as a body that has been beaten, bloodied because of the scourging that has torn deep gashes into the flesh of Christ?

56:11

The torment, the anguish that the individual went through as he paid the price for my sins and for your sins.

56:25

Listen, even if you go beyond the scourging, you'd be like, well, that's just too much for me. I can't deal with that.

56:33

Then you need to understand the very act of crucifixion itself because it was a very painful way of slowly suffocating someone to death.

56:51

And the pain and the anguish and the torment that Christ felt on the cross in his physical body because he did that for you is what the bread represents.

57:09

Maybe you don't look up to the cross and think about the rivulets of blood pouring down the cross, dripping from all of the wounds.

57:31

You know, there's a movie that has a lot of, maybe, problems with it, but I think one of the things that they did so well was capture some of the gruesomeness that we have avoided for so many years as we've tried to whitewash this thing.

57:51

It truly confronts us with what exactly happened or as close as we can get to understanding what exactly happened.

58:01

And I remember in a specific scene in this movie, there's the whipping stone, the stone that would support the individual.

58:08

This was a historical fact added. There's no stone mentioned in scripture, but this is what they would typically do in a

58:14

Roman scourging. And the image is in the aftermath, and in the aftermath, it was a bloodbath.

58:28

Do we truly think about that blood as we consume the wine or the juice in remembrance of the blood that was spilled on Calvary's cross for our sake?

58:50

Do we think about the torment and the anguish that would have accompanied the words of Christ as he cried out from the cross, my

59:07

God, my God, why has thou forsaken me?

59:15

How many of us have stopped long enough to realize that the answer to that question is us? The people of God are the reason that God forsake

59:29

Christ on the cross. The people of God are the reason that God made him who knew no sin to become sin for us so that we might become the righteousness of God.

59:48

Lastly, as stark as what I just told you was, as much as we are supposed to remember all of these things, we also remember that this is a celebration, that this is a celebratory act given to us.

01:00:06

It is a stark imagery that we are called to remind ourselves that there's a lot of things that we should go through preparing ourselves as we come to the table, recalling that this is a holy place, talking about this being a fellowship meal, recalling to mind the body and blood of Christ.

01:00:22

There is also the truth that this is a celebration that because of the body and blood of Christ, we were reconciled.

01:00:33

The priests were celebrating what God had done for them and delivering and consecrating them and ordaining them.

01:00:39

The Israelites were celebrating deliverance from Egypt as we as Christians should celebrate all the more than all of those because what we have is a simple, full, final deliverance from sin, the truth that God has fully forever redeemed us because of Christ's righteousness being imputed to us.

01:01:02

We now enter into true fellowship with God both now and for all of eternity.

01:01:16

Beloved, as we reflect on this fellowship meal that sealed this priestly covenant we see in Exodus, we should also have clear eyes at the beauty of God's covenantal faithfulness, a faithfulness that reached its full expression in Christ Jesus.

01:01:43

Listen, the meal of the ordination, again, was not about the quality of the food or the preference of taste.

01:01:49

It was about remembering a price that had been paid, holiness that is required before a most holy

01:01:58

God and grace, grace poured out on a people enabling us to have faith, faith that leads to righteousness, the imputed righteousness of Christ.

01:02:19

In the same way, as we approach the

01:02:25

Lord's table next week, we do so not to satisfy some earthly hunger.

01:02:34

We do so to remember the broken body and shed blood of the one who fulfilled every type and every shadow.

01:02:45

We are called to prepare our hearts in awe, in reverence, recognize the holy ground upon which we gather, communing with God.

01:03:00

We're called to see the cost of our salvation, not with some casual indifference, but with fear and trembling.

01:03:18

Yet even in the solemn remembrance, there's calls for unbounded celebration as we recall that Christ has delivered us from sin and death and secured an eternal fellowship with God on the basis of his blood, his righteousness.

01:03:46

So this is the question in your assignment for the week. As you prepare to come together next week and approach the table, will you approach going through motions or will you approach as one overwhelmed by the mercy of God, determined to live in true, joyful communion with the

01:04:17

Savior who gave himself for you? Let's pray.

01:04:27

Most gracious and holy God, we bow before you with our hearts humbled as we feel the weight of your mercy and your grace.

01:04:46

We are so grateful for the covenant that you have established through the blood of Christ, our great high priest,

01:04:57

Christ who offered himself once for all to secure the redemption of your people.

01:05:06

Lord, as we move through this week, help us to prepare to approach your table with true preparation, with hearts cleansed by repentance and minds fixed on Christ crucified and risen.

01:05:23

Lord, may we never take lightly the cost of our salvation, but that with great reverence we remember the body broken and the blood shed for our sins.

01:05:47

Grant us, almighty God, to live in the grace that you have given as those consecrated to your service, rejoicing in the fellowship that you have made possible.

01:06:02

And Father, as we prepare to celebrate this holy communion, fill us with gratitude, with awe, and with holy joy.

01:06:14

Unite us as one body, strengthened to proclaim your gospel and walk in faithful obedience through our days.

01:06:26

We ask all of these things in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, our precious