Sermon for Seminary June 14, 2020
Notes
Transcript
Sermon for June 14, 2020
Sermon for June 14, 2020
This morning I'll be reading Psalm chapter 116 verses 1 and 2,,, then verses 12 through 19.
I'll be reading from the Holman Christian Standard Bible.
Psalm 116:1–2, 12-19
The author of the Psalm is unknown,,, but my Study Bible gives the theme of this psalm as a praise for being saved from certain death,,, and I can relate to this psalm in so many ways!
Psalm 116:1–2, 12-19
1 I love the LORD because He has heard my appeal for mercy. 2 Because He has turned His ear to me, I will call out to Him as long as I live.
12 How can I repay the LORD for all the good He has done for me? 13 I will take the cup of salvation and call on the name of Yahweh. 14 I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all His people. 15 The death of His faithful ones is valuable in the LORD’s sight. 16 LORD, I am indeed Your servant; I am Your servant, the son of Your female servant. You have loosened my bonds. 17 I will offer You a sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of Yahweh. 18 I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all His people, 19 in the courts of the LORD’s house— within you, Jerusalem. Hallelujah!
God bless the reading and the hearing of your word this morning.
Let us pray:
Dear Lord,,, as we begin this morning,,, with everyone here today and all that are listening and watching by video,,, we ask that you open our ears to hear and our hearts and minds to receive the message that you have for us today,,, In Jesus' name I pray,,, Amen
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This has been an eye opening experience for me this week because of the scripture choices for today.
It wasn't until Tuesday that I really felt comfortable saying that Psalm 116 was the scripture for today.
I guess because I knew that it was going to be really personal and I wasn't sure if this message was just for me or one that I needed to share.
As we see,,, it was one that I needed to share.
So,,, lets begin with these verses and see how they can help us in our walk with God this week.
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Verse 1 says: 1 I love the LORD because He has heard my appeal for mercy.
The beginning of this psalm,,, is a unique expression of love,,, for the LORD,,, an expression of love that came because God heard his cry and delivered him from danger.
It's during times of trouble,,, when there is no hope,,, no way out,,, no other choice,,, no other way to turn,,, but to the Lord!
And God is merciful to hear our cry during these times,,, sometimes,,, over and over again.
And it's because of the answer that we receive during these times that they leave us in "awe" of His presence and ability to deliver us,,, snatching us sometimes from the jaws of death,,, just seconds from sure destruction!
You might not be able to relate to this example like I can,,, but if you think about the time when you became a Christian,,, when you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior because God made you aware that you couldn't make it on your own and saved you from death,,, something that you couldn't get out of,,, because of your sins,,, then maybe you can relate.
The writer of this psalm was trying to make us aware of his love for God that was expressed in amazement over what God had done for him,,, just as we should be amazed over the things that God does for us!
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Verse 2 says: 2 Because He has turned His ear to me, I will call out to Him as long as I live.
Because God heard his voice and delivered him from the danger that he was in,,, he promised to,,, call out to Him as long as he shall live
When you get to the point in your life that you realize that no-one can save you but God,,, and you realize that He has heard your cry,,, it humbles you and makes you so thankful that you do these things in gratitude,,, knowing that you aren't worthy of the things that God does for you,,, but you want to acknowledge your thankfulness in the only way that you can!
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Verse 12 says: 12 How can I repay the LORD for all the good He has done for me?
The short answer is,,, you can't!
In a sermon that I read from John Piper he says: The very use of the language “repaying the Lord for all the good He has done for me” makes me nervous.
Payback can so easily imply that grace is like a mortgage.
It’s really generous,,, but you have to pay it back.
Paul said in Acts 17:25, God is not “served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.”
In other words, you can’t give anything to God or do anything for God that he hasn’t first given to you and done for you.
You see this again in 1 Corinthians 15:10, “By the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.”
So none of our work can ever be a payment to God, because the very work is another gift from God.
With every deed we do for God we go deeper into debt to grace.
So in Psalm 116 what keeps the paying of vows free from the dangers of being treated like a debt payment is that the “payment” is, in reality, not an ordinary payment, but another act of receiving which magnifies the ongoing grace of God.
It does not magnify our resourcefulness,,, it magnifies Gods.
The answer is found in the next verse where he answers his own question.
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Verse 13 says: 13 I will take the cup of salvation and call on the name of Yahweh.
In answer to the question in verse 12,,, the writer will call on God to fill the cup.
To pay back the Lord means to go on receiving from the Lord so that the Lord’s inexhaustible goodness will be magnified.
Lifting up the cup of salvation signifies taking the Lord’s satisfying salvation in hand and drinking it and expecting more. We know this because of the next phrase:
“I will . . . call on the name of Yahweh.” I will call for more help.
What shall I render to God for graciously answering my call?
Answer: I shall call again.
I will render to God the praise and the tribute that he is never in need of from me,,, but is always overflowing with benefits when I need him,,, (which I always do).
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Verse 14 says: 14 I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all His people.
They will be fulfilled by holding up the cup of salvation and by calling on the Lord.
That is, they will be paid by faith in the promise that more grace — all-sufficient grace — is always on the way.
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Verse 15 says: 15 The death of His faithful ones is valuable in the LORD’s sight.
While entering the temple court, or while preparing to present his offering, the poet seems to have reflected upon his brush with death.
He decided that,,, as one of God's faithful ones,,, who is valuable in the Lord's sight,,, death was not something to be afraid of.
God was watching over him and protecting him.
He was precious to Him, and when death did occur it was not anything that he needed to be worried about.
God was still beside him.
God would take care of him.
My Study Bible says that God stays close to us even in death.
When a believer we love is nearing death,,, we may be filled with sorrow,,, but we can find comfort in remembering that believer's,,, (the Lord's faithful servants,,, His loved ones),,, are precious to God,,, and that He carefully chooses the time when they will be called into His presence.
We can use this as comfort when we've lost a loved one.
God sees,,, and each life is valuable to Him!
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Verse 16 says: 16 LORD, I am indeed Your servant; I am Your servant, the son of Your female servant. You have loosened my bonds.
The writer of this Psalm says that since God is watching over him,,, even if it comes to death,,, then because of that,,, he will be God's servant forever.
Adam Clark said in his Commentary that: "In those days,,, if a servant was set free during the year of jubilee but wanted to stay on as a free servant,,, he would have his ear pierced to the door frame as a sign that he would serve there forever" and that’s what this writer was trying to portray.
He was saying that this writer was so happy that he would serve God forever,,, even if he was set free!
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Verse 17 says: 17 I will offer You a sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of Yahweh.
Because he is so thankful,,, he is going to offer God a sacrifice of thanksgiving,,, and,,, because he is so thankful,,, he is going to call on the name of Yahweh,,, and this is something that we always seem to do so little of!
When everything is going great,,, we don't praise God like we should or give Him thanks like we should,,, but this one was going to do what he needed to do,,, to show his appreciation for all that God had done for him.
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Verses 18 & 19 say: 18 I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all His people, 19 in the courts of the LORD’s house— within you, Jerusalem. Hallelujah!
In these last two verses he is continuing to praise God,,, and he is going to do it everywhere!
Again,,, as Christians,,, this is something that we should be doing all of the time but we don't do it like we should.
We need to use this as an example to follow and guide us in our daily walk.
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So after reading and looking at this psalm this morning,,, how is the best way to try to repay God,,, even if we will never really be able to do that?
The first thing that we can do,,, is to truly accept our salvation.
Once you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior it almost seems too easy to be true.
Sometimes I struggled with this in the past because I always wanted to try to do something to earn it,,, but we can't!
It's only when you finally realize that there is nothing that you can ever do to be good enough on your own that you can accept this free gift that means so much to us!
Without Jesus Christ we would all be left to deal with our sins by ourselves.
But since Jesus was born,,, lived and died on the cross for our sins,,, was resurrected on the third day and lives forever at the right hand of God to intercede for us today,,, our sins have been wiped clean by the blood of Jesus to be remembered no more!
So don't doubt anymore,,, accept it as it was intended to be given!
And if you have never accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior,,, now is the perfect opportunity for you to do so.
God is always patiently waiting for you to accept His invitation,,, but He won't wait forever,,, and we aren't promised tomorrow,,, so please make that choice today,,, don't miss this opportunity,,, accept His invitation if you feel God's call,,, that way you can join us in trying to repay God for everything that He has done for us.
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Which leads me to the second thing that we can do,,, and that's to give Him praise!
And I don't just mean praise Him while we are here at church.
I mean to praise God all throughout the day,,, each and every day,,, whenever something good happens we need to be sure that we remember to give God the thanks that He deserves!
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The last thing that we can do,,, is obey His commands!
John 14:21 says: 21 The one who has My commands and keeps them is the one who loves Me. And the one who loves Me will be loved by My Father. I also will love him and will reveal Myself to him.”
We are human and will fall short sometimes but we need to do everything that we can to obey the words of God all the time.
If we listen to the Holy Spirit as He guides us in our daily walk,,, He will keep us on the correct path and our walk will be pleasing to God because of that.
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All of these things can help us in our daily walk with God.
Hopefully as we continue with our communion service we will remember all of the things that we need to give God our praise and glory for,,, today,,, and every day.
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But,,, before we begin,,, I wanted to explain that communion will be different than what we are used to,,, as just about everything is different since this coronavirus came around.
Everything will work as usual except our reading will be from the screen instead of the hymnal,,, until we get to the place where we accept the elements.
At that time if you will come forward and pick up your packet and return to your seat,,, after everyone has received their packet,,, we will open them together and I'll lead us through the taking of the elements at that time.
At this time,,, I've asked Phil to demonstrate how to open the communion packets since they are different than what we are used to using.
After that we will continue.
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So as we begin, I want to remind each of you that everyone is welcome to participate in Holy Communion in the Methodist Church.
You don't have to be a member of this church because it is the Lord's supper, not ours, and Christ that invites you.
As our ritual puts it: “Christ our Lord invites to his table all who love him, who earnestly repent of their sin and seek to live in peace with one another.”
We do not refuse any who present themselves desiring to receive. Whether you should receive Communion with us is between you and God.
As we begin,,, let us have a moment of prayer and confession,,, I'll begin then we will have a few moments of silence so each of you can make your own prayer and confession silently,,, then I'll finish.
Dear Heavenly Father,,, we come to you this morning and thank you for all the blessings that we have received. We thank you for your Son who died on the cross for our sin's and made it possible to come to you in prayer. I ask for forgiveness for my sins and I know that the Holy Spirit will put before you any that I miss. Now we will take just a few moments in silence to allow everyone to speak personally to you, then I'll finish,,,,. ,,,,
Most Gracious and Holy God,,, again we thank you for this opportunity to come before you. We ask forgiveness as a church family together,,, for any sins we've committed before we take of your Holy Communion. These things and all others we ask,,, in Jesus' name,,, Amen
If you will look at the screen we will begin reading as we normally do in the book by reading responsively.
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them up to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
It is right, and a good and joyful thing,
always and everywhere to give thanks to you,
Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
And so,
with your people on earth
and all the company of heaven
we praise your name and join their unending hymn:
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.
The pastor may raise hands.
Holy are you, and blessed is your Son Jesus Christ.
By the baptism of his suffering, death, and resurrection
you gave birth to your Church,
delivered us from slavery to sin and death,
and made with us a new covenant
by water and the Spirit.
The pastor may hold hands, palms down, over the bread.
On the night in which he gave himself up for us,
he took bread, gave thanks to you, broke the bread,
gave it to his disciples, and said:
"Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you.
Do this in remembrance of me."
The pastor may hold hands, palms down, over the cup.
When the supper was over, he took the cup,
gave thanks to you, gave it to his disciples, and said:
"Drink from this, all of you;
this is my blood of the new covenant,
poured out for you and for many
for the forgiveness of sins.
Do this, as often as you drink it,
in remembrance of me."
The pastor may raise hands.
And so,
in remembrance of these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ,
we offer ourselves in praise and thanksgiving
as a holy and living sacrifice,
in union with Christ's offering for us,
as we proclaim the mystery of faith.
Christ has died; Christ is risen; Christ will come again.
The pastor may hold hands, palms down, over the bread and cup.
Pour out your Holy Spirit on us gathered here,
and on these gifts of bread and wine.
Make them be for us the body and blood of Christ,
that we may be for the world the body of Christ,
redeemed by his blood.
The pastor may raise hands.
By your Spirit make us one with Christ,
one with each other,
and one in ministry to all the world,
until Christ comes in final victory
and we feast at his heavenly banquet.
Through your Son Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit in your holy Church,
all honor and glory is yours, almighty Father,
now and forever.
Amen
Now you may come forward to receive this prepared for you!
On the night in which he gave himself up for us,
he took bread, gave thanks to you, broke the bread, gave it to his disciples, and said:
"Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you.
Do this in remembrance of me."
Body of Christ - Given for you!
When the supper was over, he took the cup,
gave thanks to you, gave it to his disciples, and said:
"Drink from this, all of you;
this is my blood of the new covenant,
poured out for you and for many
for the forgiveness of sins.
Do this, as often as you drink it,
in remembrance of me."
Blood of Christ - Given for you!
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