Tonight we celebrated the Lord's Supper at church and it was such a blessing. I feel like many times in my life when I have celebrate the Lord's supper, we have been challenged to "get right with God so you will be worthy of taking the Lord's supper." It's almost the idea of, "Hurry, clean up your life so you are 'worthy' to take part. Get all of that sin OUT!" This is Biblical in the sense that if we have known sin in our lives we are to deal with it before partaking, but there is NOTHING that we can do in our OWN strength to become "worthy" of going before God in any way. Being able to stand before Christ has nothing to do with how GOOD I am, the fact that I have no "unknown" sin in my life, the fact that I am a nice person... being able to stand before Christ is GRACE.
We've been going through a book study in Sunday school called Respectable Sins by Jerry Bridges. (Great read!) He talkes alot about the need of preaching the Gospel to yourself daily... focusing on the death, burial and resurrection of Christ, but also what this means for my life and How God is working in my life today BECAUSE of the Gospel. Because of the Gospel and because of Christ's work on the cross I can have victory, I can love, I can have peace, etc... and ultimately I can glorify God.
When we step back and view the cross it can't help but humble us. Today Pastor Fisher was teaching on this and he brought out the fact that even if the whole world were perfect but ME and I sinned ONE time, that would be enough sin for Jesus to die. My sin drove Him to the cross.
SO, all of that said, tonight as we celebrated the Lord's supper it was a needed time for me to focus on the cross of Jesus Christ. We read from Isaiah 52:13-53:12 which says...
Behold,
bmy servant shall act wisely;
he shall be high and lifted up,
14 As many were astonished at you—
chis appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,
and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—
15 so
dshall he sprinkle many nations;
ekings shall shut their mouths because of him;
ffor that which has not been told them they see,
and that which they have not heard they understand.
53 gWho has believed what he has heard from us?
And to whom has
hthe arm of the
Lord been revealed?
2 For he grew up before him like a young plant,
iand like a root out of dry ground;
jhe had no form or majesty that we should look at him,
and no beauty that we should desire him.
3 kHe was despised and rejected by men;
a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief;
and as one from whom men hide their faces
he was despised, and
lwe esteemed him not.
4 mSurely he has borne our griefs
yet we esteemed him stricken,
nsmitten by God, and afflicted.
5 oBut he was wounded for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
pand with his stripes we are healed.
6 qAll we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned—every one—to his own way;
rand the
Lord has laid on him
7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,
syet he opened not his mouth;
tlike a
ulamb that is led to the slaughter,
and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,
so he opened not his mouth.
8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away;
and as for his generation,
vwho considered
that he was cut off out of the land of the living,
stricken for the transgression of my people?
9 And they made his grave with the wicked
wand with a rich man in his death,
although
xhe had done no violence,
and there was no deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet
yit was the will of the
Lord to crush him;
zwhen his soul makes an offering for guilt,
he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;
athe will of the
Lord shall prosper in his hand.
11 Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied;
by his knowledge shall
bthe righteous one, my servant,
cmake many to be accounted righteous,
dand he shall bear their iniquities.
12 eTherefore I will divide him a portion with the many,
fand he shall divide the spoil with the strong,
because he poured out his soul to death
and was numbered with the transgressors;
gyet he bore the sin of many,
and makes intercession for the transgressors.
WOW. To think about what Christ has done for me... Thank you, Jesus.
