The Unshakeable Church: Anchored in Grace

• Final Instructions and Farewell [00:42:28 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses a hypothetical 'last Sunday' scenario to introduce Paul's final instructions to the Corinthians, emphasizing the weight of parting words and eternal perspective.
• Benediction and Peace [00:43:44 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor reads and reflects on 2 Corinthians 13:11-14, focusing on the commands to rejoice, restore, comfort, agree, and live in peace, culminating in the Trinitarian blessing.
• Sermon Preparation and Dependence on God [00:44:12 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor offers a prayer for himself, asking God to help him deliver the word faithfully despite feeling unsettled, highlighting the need for divine assistance in preaching.
• Rejoicing [00:46:21 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor distinguishes joy from happiness, arguing that joy has an object (God), whereas happiness is an emotion. He commands rejoicing because the object is the living God.
• Restoration/Maturity [00:48:31 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor explains the command to 'be made complete' or 'aim for restoration,' linking it to the Corinthians' history of conflict and the need for maturity in faith and practice, not just knowledge.
• Comfort [00:49:50 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor connects the command to 'be comforted' to God's comfort in affliction, emphasizing that believers should seek rescue from God rather than managing things on their own.
• Unity/Values [00:50:22 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor interprets 'be like-minded' as having the same values rather than identical opinions, using anecdotes about church splits over trivial matters to illustrate the need for shared Christ-centered values.
• Peace [00:52:15 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor addresses the command to 'live in peace,' contrasting it with the Corinthian church's history of lawsuits and infighting, noting that the God of peace calls for a church of peace.
• Affectionate Greeting [00:52:40 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor clarifies the 'holy kiss' as a non-romantic sign of affection and welcome, comparing it to cultural greetings like cheek kisses or hugs to emphasize welcoming one another.
• Church Identity and Perseverance [00:55:02 ▶️ 📄]
  > Using the 'Ship of Theseus' paradox, the pastor argues that while church members and leaders are replaceable, the church remains true if it holds to the gospel and 'floats' functionally.
• Church Continuity and Replaceability [00:56:20 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor argues that while all human members (pastors, elders, teams) are temporary and replaceable, the church remains a church as long as it holds to the gospel, using the 'Theseus' ship' analogy to question if it still 'floats'.
• The Trinity and Benediction [00:58:57 ▶️ 📄]
  > Analysis of 2 Corinthians 13:14 as a Trinitarian benediction, explaining the theological significance of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and the specific grammatical emphasis on 'the' grace, love, and fellowship.
• Divine Grace [01:02:05 ▶️ 📄]
  > Definition of grace as unearned favor that reconciles enemies of God to Him, illustrated by Thomas Watson's poetic descriptions of grace as adornment and life-sustaining power.
• Divine Love [01:04:37 ▶️ 📄]
  > Explanation that God's love is the motivation for both judging sin and saving sinners, contrasted with human 'fuzzy feelings' love, and illustrated by a father's steadfast support of his children regardless of performance.
• Holy Spirit's Presence [01:08:13 ▶️ 📄]
  > Description of fellowship as intimate, constant companionship with the Holy Spirit, using Psalm 139 to demonstrate that God's presence is inescapable even in sin or loneliness.
• Benediction as Prayer and Declaration [01:09:42 ▶️ 📄]
  > Interpretation of the benediction as both a humble prayer/request to God and a declaration of existing reality for believers, utilizing 'Calvard's Corollary' to explain that commands imply the presence of opposing doubt or sin.
• Divine Presence and Assurance [01:11:12 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor explains that the apostolic blessing is a declaration of existing reality (God's presence) rather than a wish for something new, countering the human tendency toward doubt and fear.
• Scriptural Interpretation (Calvin's Corollary) [01:11:35 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor introduces a hermeneutical principle stating that whenever God issues a command or blessing, it implies an opposing force (sin, doubt, or the world) is working against it, necessitating the reminder.
• Communion and Self-Examination [01:17:34 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor transitions to the liturgy of communion, warning that partaking is spiritually dangerous for those who have not made a public profession of faith, emphasizing the need to discern the body and blood.

• Sermon Illustration [00:43:07 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor mentions dying spouses telling surviving spouses to remarry, wishing the best for them, to illustrate the mindset of leaving a final, loving message.
• Sermon Illustration [00:44:56 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor asks the congregation to imagine parents leaving their children home alone for the first time to help visualize the situation of Paul leaving the church with final instructions.
• Sermon Illustration [00:44:56 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses an analogy of parents leaving children home alone for the first time to explain Paul's final instructions to the church in his absence, highlighting the anxiety and need for clear commands.
• Sermon Illustration [00:47:15 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor contrasts a plate of soggy cereal with cheesecake to illustrate that joy requires a worthy object; just as one enjoys cheesecake, believers rejoice in God.
• Sermon Illustration [00:48:05 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a personal anecdote about forgetting to appreciate family members (mom, dad, spouse) and needing to remember their value to start rejoicing in them, applying this to appreciating God.
• Sermon Illustration [00:50:53 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor recounts a story about a church splitting over the movement of a grandmother's quilt, noting that while the quilt was the spark, it represented deeper fracture lines.
• Sermon Illustration [00:51:28 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor tells a story about theologian Chad Van Dixhorn becoming a Christian; his pastor was fired and lost his house for accepting a new convert against the church's suspicious values.
• Sermon Illustration [00:54:02 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a personal reflection on his deathbed, stating he would care less about his children's careers or awards and only desire that they 'walk with Christ.'
• Sermon Illustration [00:55:07 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor explains the 'Ship of Theseus' paradox (replacing parts of a ship until no original parts remain) to argue that a church remains true to its identity if it holds to the gospel, even as members and leaders are replaced.
• Sermon Illustration [00:56:04 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the philosophical paradox of 'Theseus' ship' to ask if a church remains a church when all its members are replaced over time. He then compares the church to children left at home, arguing that just as parents hire a babysitter (in loco parentis) to watch over kids when they are gone, God provides His presence to watch over the church when human leaders depart.
• Sermon Illustration [01:05:59 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a personal anecdote about being a father watching his children's sports and music performances, noting that a good dad cheers just as loudly for failure as for success because of commitment, illustrating God's steadfast love that is not based on performance.
• Sermon Illustration [01:07:51 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor illustrates the concept of doubt by comparing believers to 'petulant children' who accuse their parents of not loving them because they didn't get a new bike, and to a 'blind child crying out for mom and dad' who cannot see that the parents have been present the whole time.
• Sermon Illustration [01:16:45 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares an anecdote about a friend's church adopting a 42-year-old woman with no family, changing her name so she could say she was 'part of the family' and dine at the family table, illustrating how believers are adopted into God's family.
• Sermon Illustration [01:10:41 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor explains the etymology of the word 'goodbye' as a contraction of 'God be with ye,' illustrating that everyday language often contains embedded prayers or declarations of God's presence.

• Pastoral Charge [00:43:44 ▶️ 📄]
  > Rejoice, aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace, and greet one another with a holy kiss.
• Pastoral Charge [00:49:35 ▶️ 📄]
  > Make spiritual maturity and completeness the primary aim and goal of the congregation.
• Pastoral Charge [00:54:28 ▶️ 📄]
  > Prioritize walking with Christ and enjoying the blessings of a life with Him above all other pursuits.
• Pastoral Charge [00:54:55 ▶️ 📄]
  > Continue maintaining the bond of love for Christ within the church community.
• Pastoral Charge [01:01:18 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor requests the congregation to pay close attention to the specific articles ('the') in the text to understand the unique, owned nature of God's grace, love, and fellowship.
• Pastoral Charge [01:18:30 ▶️ 📄]
  > Come speak with the pastor or elders to learn how to trust in Christ.
• Pastoral Charge [01:18:45 ▶️ 📄]
  > Wait for communal serving, observe silence, and engage in personal meditation and worship during communion.

[00:00:00] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_07]
[00:00:00] We're charged enough to do one more.
[00:00:07] So do you all ever do, like, this moment?
[00:00:15] Because he's, like, a little bit showy.
[00:00:18] I don't know.
[00:00:21] I don't know if we do.
[00:00:22] We have in the past.

[00:00:24] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_09]
[00:00:24] They just kind of work their way out.
[00:00:28] I think there are better things to do.
[00:00:31] I don't want to diss on him at all.
[00:00:33] And it is...
[00:00:35] You know, he keys, I think he keys things for the showy version of the solstice.
[00:00:45] Yes, because it's so high.

[00:00:49] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_07]
[00:00:49] Yeah.
[00:00:50] Oh, hi.

[00:00:51] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_09]
[00:00:51] They just, they start to hold sound the same.
[00:00:53] You know, there's a fine line between trying to keep things interesting dynamically here.
[00:01:01] But.
[00:01:09] and the delivery of the song, and I make a video of it and stuff like that.
[00:01:15] It's just so great.
[00:01:19] It's so hard.
[00:01:23] That's what those things do, you know.
[00:01:27] All the things that I've been in a small sort of context with, like those things in my life, they're so beautiful they're distracting me.
[00:01:48] You might not see this, but you might see it.
[00:01:57] I don't think there's a church on the street.
[00:02:25] ah Thank you.

[00:03:48] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_07]
[00:03:48] I took it around and put it with the most power.

[00:03:51] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_09]
[00:03:51] Yeah, it was starting to go on in the lowest volume.
[00:03:55] I still got something.
[00:03:57] I knew it was starting to go on.
[00:03:59] I don't know.
[00:04:35] I'll talk about the at all here.

[00:05:05] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]
[00:05:05] Good morning, Harbor Church.
[00:05:11] We are a family of God, bound together to glorify and enjoy him forever.
[00:05:19] We do this by sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ, strengthening each other in him, and showing him to our community and to the world.
[00:05:29] We have a couple of announcements.
[00:05:32] There's a blood drive here at the church on June the 19th.
[00:05:38] It'll be from 2 to 6.30 p.m.
[00:05:41] You can see Bethany or McKenna to sign up for that.
[00:05:46] There's a summer calendar.
[00:05:48] It is outside on the table in the foyer.
[00:05:52] Michael's going to mention, talk for a minute about a ministry fair.

[00:05:56] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:05:56] Yeah.
[00:05:56] Just real quick, we did this last year.
[00:05:59] I think it was a huge success.
[00:06:01] And this year we're going to do it again.
[00:06:03] We might rebrand it as Connection Fair or something like that, just because we're going to have a lot of ministries and also volunteer opportunities.
[00:06:10] We're going to set it all up during the Sunday school hour so you can learn a little bit about all the different ministries going on and perhaps find a place where you can serve or get connected.
[00:06:19] So that's going to be during the Sunday school hour on June 14th.

[00:06:26] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]
[00:06:26] Sharon's going to talk for a moment on the Vacation Bible School that's coming up.

[00:06:33] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]
[00:06:33] Good morning. A different subject. Most of this announcement is for women of all ages and girls who are old enough to be interested. Every summer, the Women's Care Team sponsors a summer discussion series designed to benefit us spiritually and relationally, but also to fit well
[00:06:53] within the scope of a more relaxed summer schedule. This summer, we're going to be reading together in discussing this book by Dr. Richard Belcher, Christ Fulfills All, Introducing the Biblical Covenants. Now, you may have seen this picture that's up on the screen. It's just a graph of
[00:07:11] all of the cross-references in Scripture. And to me, it's a great visual of the magnificent, beautifully cohesive nature of the Bible. Covenant theology helps us to understand better and appreciate more that magnificent cohesiveness.
[00:07:30] Pastor Michael often refers to what he calls the most important diagram of our lives, which illustrates for us that we can only know of God what he chooses to reveal to us.
[00:07:41] Covenant theology explains that God has chosen to reveal himself to us, to relate to us, to bind us to himself via covenants.
[00:07:50] This summer, we'll examine what those covenants are, how they point us to Christ, and how he binds us to himself by perfectly satisfying every covenant.
[00:08:02] Jennifer Donovan will facilitate our discussions as we meet three times over the course of June and July.
[00:08:09] And then as a special treat, Pastor Michael has made arrangements for Dr. Belcher to visit Harbor on August 12th to speak to all of us and answer our questions.
[00:08:19] Now, while the summer discussion series is for women and girls only, we invite the men as well to read the book and certainly to hear Dr. Belcher in August.
[00:08:29] I've already read it.
[00:08:31] I assure you it's easy to read and understand.
[00:08:34] But, ladies, we want you to come to the discussions, even if your life is absolutely bonkers and you cannot find time to read the book.
[00:08:43] For more information on meeting dates, book purchase, availability of child care, all of that, refer to the email that you received this week from Women's Care Team or see the flyers that are posted around the church.
[00:08:59] One final thing.
[00:09:01] Ladies, if you want a book and the purchase cost presents any difficulty for you, please just speak privately to any member of the Women's Care Team and a book will quickly and confidentially find its way into your hands.
[00:09:16] We look forward to sharing this experience with you this summer.
[00:09:20] Thank you.

[00:09:28] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:09:28] Thanks so much, Erin.
[00:09:30] And men, if you're interested in reading the book, there's also a longer form book, a couple of guys I'm going to be reading that with.
[00:09:38] See me and we'll get you hooked up.
[00:09:41] All right.
[00:09:41] The Lord calls us to worship this morning from His Word.
[00:09:44] Would you please stand as we recite God's Word together?
[00:09:47] It's from Psalm 31.
[00:09:48] I'll begin, and if you would respond in the bold and underlined.
[00:09:52] But I trust in you, O Lord.
[00:09:55] I say you are my God.
[00:09:58] My times are in your hand.
[00:10:00] Rescue me from the hands of my enemies and from my persecutors.
[00:10:05] Make your face shine on your servant.
[00:10:07] Save me in your steadfast love.
[00:10:09] Oh, how abundant is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you, Then work for those who take refuge in you, in the sight of the children of mankind.
[00:10:21] Let's pray together.
[00:10:23] Lord God, we are here because of your grace.
[00:10:28] We're here because of your mercy.
[00:10:31] We could not stand before you on our own.
[00:10:35] Our works are not good enough.
[00:10:37] Lord, we were born into sin.
[00:10:40] And Lord God, you would be justly and right, Lord, to cast us away as rebels.
[00:10:47] But Lord, by your mercy, you have washed us, justified us, and saved us.
[00:10:53] Lord God, this is from your love.
[00:10:56] That you have loved us from before the foundation of the world.
[00:10:59] And now, Lord God, we are grateful that we have fellowship with you.
[00:11:04] In the same way, Lord God, that your spirit filled the glory of the temple.
[00:11:10] Lord, so you fill us in our hearts with your presence.
[00:11:15] I pray, Lord God, please, in this worship service, may you be glorified in our hearts.
[00:11:21] Lord, help us to see you as bigger and grander than we thought of before.
[00:11:26] And so, Lord God, please teach us your ways and help us to walk in your paths.
[00:11:31] So, Lord God, to that end, we now pray your prayer, the Lord's Prayer, as we say now all together.
[00:11:37] Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.
[00:11:40] Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
[00:11:45] Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
[00:11:51] And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
[00:11:56] For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever.
[00:12:01] As you stand, let's sing together.

[00:12:02] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:12:02] You may be seated.

[00:15:18] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:15:18] The Reformers talked often about a two-fold knowledge of God.
[00:15:24] And what they meant by that is when you behold a holy God, you learn knowledge about who he is, and when you see him, it also reveals who you are. As we sing and behold the holy God,
[00:15:45] we are immediately faced with this ever-present reality. We are unholy. And so that's why every week here at Harbor, we join together and confess our sins together. Would you confess your sins with me out loud together as we read? Heavenly Father, you have made us to be alive in Christ.
[00:16:08] We were once dead in trespasses and sins, but you quickened us by the power of the Holy Spirit.
[00:16:16] Forgive us for not reckoning on this every moment of our lives. Forgive us for living as though we were still in Adam rather than in Christ. Forgive us for not being thankful to you for all that you
[00:16:30] have done and have promised to do in us and through us and for us. In Jesus' name, amen.
[00:16:39] Take a moment now in this silence to confess your sin to God. Father, we confess to you how dull we are, to the reality that we have been made new in Christ, where we wake up many days and we live as
[00:17:12] if we were still in Adam. We live as if we were still bound, not remembering that we were united in the death of Christ and the resurrection of Christ. Lord, please lift our gaze to heavenly
[00:17:28] things. Forgive us, Lord, for living as if you had not saved us, living as if you had not given us your Holy Spirit. Lord, please, we ask that you would forgive us, that you would bring us to new
[00:17:43] life. We ask this in Christ's name. Amen. When you come to the Lord, and even as you look on his holiness and you confess your unholiness, you need to know one more thing. You need to know that
[00:17:59] you are truly and really forgiven. And so God assures us from his very word, out of his own mouth, that when we come to him confessing by faith, we are forgiven. Hear this assurance from
[00:18:12] Psalm 103. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love towards those who fear him. As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions
[00:18:30] from us. As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame. He remembers that we are dust. Amen. Would you stand with me
[00:18:49] as we continue to worship our great God.

[00:18:52] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:18:52] Out of my bondage, sorrow, and night Jesus, I come, Jesus, I come

[00:19:07] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:19:07] Into Thy freedom, gladness, and light Jesus, I come to Thee

[00:19:17] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:19:17] Out of my sickness, into Thy health Out of my wanting and into thy wealth, out of my sin and into thyself, Jesus, I come to thee.
[00:19:35] My shameful failure and loss, Jesus, I come, Jesus, I come into the glorious gain of thy cross.
[00:19:56] Jesus, I come to Thee, out of my sorrows and into Thy bonds, out of life's storms and into Thy calm, out of distress and to jubilant song.
[00:20:17] Jesus, I come to Thee.
[00:20:20] Jesus, I come, Jesus, I come, into Thy blessed way through the high.
[00:20:41] Jesus, I come to Thee.
[00:20:45] Myself in Thy love.
[00:20:52] Despair into raptures of love.
[00:20:57] Upward for things I could do.
[00:21:01] Jesus, I come to Thee.
[00:21:15] Jesus, I come.
[00:21:22] Into the joy and light of Thy home.
[00:21:27] Jesus, I come to Thee.
[00:21:31] The depths of root unto the peace of thy sheltering fold, ever thy glorious face to behold, Jesus I come to thee.
[00:21:50] The depths of roots untold Into the peace of thy sheltering fold Thy glorious face to behold Jesus, I come to thee

[00:22:16] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:22:16] Oftentimes in the Christian life, it's very beneficial to pause and think about the things that we say and hear regularly.
[00:22:31] We say and recite together the Lord's Prayer every week, but sometimes it's very helpful for us to pause and think about what are we actually saying when we pray this prayer. And so our confession
[00:22:46] of faith this morning comes from the question and answers about the Lord's Prayer. In the Westminster Shorter Catechism, number 107, I ask you this morning, dear Christians, What does the conclusion of the Lord's Prayer teach us?
[00:23:04] The conclusion of the Lord's Prayer, which is, For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
[00:23:13] Teaches us to take our encouragement in prayer from God only, and in our prayers to praise him, ascribing kingdom, power, and glory to him, And in testimony of our desire and assurance to be heard, we say, Amen.
[00:23:32] As we continue with our monthly memory verse, our memory verse is Proverbs 1, verse 7.
[00:23:40] Let's say it out loud together.
[00:23:42] The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.
[00:23:46] Fools despise wisdom and instruction.
[00:23:50] Let's continue to sing.

[00:23:51] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:23:51] This song, bow for it, the saints and heirs of time Shall pass away, love so sure, God still it The saints and it shall for saints and heirs of song A train, could the scroll stretch from sky
[00:27:41] Stand, bow for it, the saints and heirs Rich and pure, measureless, it shall for it This morning we're going to read from God's Word from the Old Testament, Numbers chapter 6.

[00:28:50] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:28:50] This is God's command to Aaron and his sons, which would be the priests, going forward.
[00:28:56] It would be hard-pressed to find words like this that were more repeated over God's people than these lines.
[00:29:07] This is God's holy inspired word.
[00:29:08] the Lord spoke to Moses saying speak to Aaron and his sons saying thus shall you bless the people of Israel you shall say to them the Lord bless you and keep you the Lord make his face to shine
[00:29:22] upon you and be gracious to you the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace so shall they put my name upon the people of Israel and I will bless them we come into the
[00:29:36] presence of God. And because of Christ, the Lord's face shines or smiles upon his people. And so we have the great privilege of bringing our request to him. So I'd ask that one of our elders, Bill
[00:29:49] Grabb, would come up and lead us in prayer. Let's go to God in prayer. Father, what a magnificent

[00:30:10] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]
[00:30:10] promise that you, the almighty God, the ruler of the ends of the earth, have put your name upon us, your people. In no way do we deserve to have that name, but you have done that. You have written
[00:30:30] your name upon our hearts. We praise you. Yours is a name that is above every name, for which every person will bow and everyone will confess that Jesus is Lord. Some will bow before you full
[00:30:50] of adoration and praise but others will bow before you in terror because they didn't bow before you while they were on this earth so we pause for a minute as we do every week to
[00:31:07] to pray for someone we know that doesn't know jesus father we ask that these people would bow their knee before you in this life rather than in the next father please draw these that we have prayed for into a saving relationship with yourself. We pray that you
[00:31:40] would give us courage and opportunity to share the good news of Jesus with them. Lord, open doors.
[00:31:49] Your word says that we say that there are many months before the harvest, but you said lift up your eyes, look at the fields, they're white for harvest. Lord, help us to lift up our eyes, to see
[00:32:04] people around us that are lost and to recognize their need for you give us opportunity to share with to share with them your your love and your power father we pray for the work of the hope of
[00:32:19] morsel we thank you for the shelter they provide for homeless women and children in our community father we pray you would use them to advance your kingdom you said that you didn't call come to call
[00:32:34] those who are well but those who are sick to repentance and many of those people they minister to are are are sick not just not just physically or or financially but many are sick spiritually
[00:32:53] lord we pray you bring them to saving knowledge of yourself lift them out of their despair and use them to bear fruit in your kingdom we lift up our sister church grace presbyterian in Harrisburg, and their pastor, Eugene Odom, their associate pastor, Ken Wajowski. Father,
[00:33:13] we ask that their worship this Sunday and every Sunday would be pleasing in your sight.
[00:33:19] We pray that you would give them vision and opportunity to reach others in their community for Christ. We pray for Tennant and Candy, our missionaries this week, Tennant and Candy Breasto and their ministry campus outreach. And even now, as many new graduates that were part
[00:33:41] of campus outreach during their time in college are now going out into the workforce or our ministry. Father, we pray that they would continue in the faith. We pray they would minister well for you. Father, we pray that the things that they've learned and been taught in campus outreach
[00:34:04] through Tennant and Candy, that they would pass those on to others, that your kingdom would grow.
[00:34:11] And we pray for the new freshmen that would come to campus outreach this fall, that even now you'd be preparing hearts. And Father, we ask that your kingdom would be advanced through their ministry.
[00:34:26] We have, each of us in the congregation have particular needs that we pray for, and we have some on our prayer list in particular.
[00:34:35] We pray for Janice's Uncle Mike, Lindsay's sister-in-law Barbara.
[00:34:40] Father, we pray for Crystal's father.
[00:34:42] All these are struggling with cancer.
[00:34:44] We pray that you would bring healing, that you bring the best possible treatment, but ultimately that you would free them from this disease.
[00:34:51] continue to lift up Bennett Mitchell, ask you to free him from the seizures that he's struggled with.
[00:35:00] And Father, we pray for Emma.
[00:35:03] We pray for freedom from her struggles, healing from the injuries.
[00:35:08] And we also want to lift up Lindsay's mother this morning as she's in the hospital.
[00:35:13] Father, we pray that the infection would be cleared up and that you would get her completely well.
[00:35:21] give Lindsay wisdom in how to minister to her as well. Father, we confess that we don't know how to pray as we should. Teach us to pray. Lord, teach us to claim the promises of your word. Even
[00:35:36] your word says that in Jesus Christ they are yes. Father, help us to learn how to claim those promises. Teach us how to pour out our hearts before you, not to hold back, but to talk to
[00:35:51] you about every little detail. Father, we pray, help us to intercede for others that you bring into our lives, and in praying for them, give us a love for them to reach them for Christ.
[00:36:04] Help us to be in tune with your Spirit. Lord, as Michael preaches, we pray that you would give him the words that you would have him to say. Pray that you would open our ears to hear. Lord, give us
[00:36:17] clarity of mind to understand. And Father, we pray that you would open our hearts, enlarge our hearts to obey the things that we hear from your word this morning. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.

[00:36:35] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:36:35] Thanks, Bill. As deacons prepare to take up tithes and offerings, it's a chance for us to worship God by giving. This is not about ourselves. This is not about us earning anything with God. We already
[00:36:50] We have everything that we need from Christ.
[00:36:53] So as Harvard members, we promise to support the worship and work of the church to the best of our ability.
[00:36:58] So this is our chance to do that.
[00:36:59] And if you're a visitor this morning, we don't expect anything from you.
[00:37:02] Of course, welcome to give if you'd like.
[00:37:05] But we just want you to know that we do this out of joy, not out of sheer obligation.
[00:37:10] So whatever way you give, may you give with a cheerful heart.

[00:37:21] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_09]
[00:37:21] You guys know this tune, this Christmas tune that we're going to sing.
[00:37:24] Careful, don't sing the Christmas song.
[00:37:26] Let's sing the Apostles' Creed to Come Thou Long Expected Jesus.

[00:40:18] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:40:18] Church of Jesus, universal in name, our one and just, in commune with the saints.
[00:40:36] Lord, let your name be praised.

[00:41:06] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:41:06] Let all the nations gather together and worship at your feet.
[00:41:11] And Lord God, we look forward to the day when you make all things new.
[00:41:16] Lord, until that time, Lord, help us and empower us to be faithful.
[00:41:21] to be faithful in prayer, to be faithful in reading and hearing and singing and applying your word, and Lord, faithful in caring for one another. Thank you for blessing us. Help us, Lord God, to bless one another. We ask you to take these tithes and offerings and use them for
[00:41:40] your glory in Christ's name we pray. Would you please stand as we thank God for his blessings by singing doxology together.

[00:41:50] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:41:50] Praise God from whom the saints...

[00:42:25] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:42:25] You may be seated.
[00:42:28] So what if this was my last Sunday here?
[00:42:31] Now, I promise, as far as I'm aware, it's not.
[00:42:35] But I'm just saying, what if it was?
[00:42:37] Sometimes I overthink things a little bit, and so I think about these things.
[00:42:41] What would you say? What would you do?
[00:42:43] What would you not do?
[00:42:44] What if this was the last day on earth?
[00:42:47] What if today is the last day that I'm alive?
[00:42:50] What would you do? What would you say?
[00:42:52] who would you talk to? What would you say to somebody if you thought perhaps you would never see them again? How would you say goodbye? What important message would you want to leave? And for example, I know of dying spouses who have told their surviving spouses to remarry,
[00:43:10] right? They wish the best for them. So here in this text, as we close the second letter to the Corinthians, Paul wants to come to the Corinthians. He's already said it, but he can't control his
[00:43:23] plans. We already know his travel plans have changed. It's dangerous to travel in those days.
[00:43:28] And so Paul gives a final goodbye, and he leaves the church with instructions that will last far beyond himself. We might call this a good word. So here's the conclusion of 2 Corinthians chapter 13
[00:43:44] verses 11 through 14. God's holy and inspired word. Finally, brothers, rejoice, aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints greet you. The grace of the Lord Jesus
[00:44:04] Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Let's pray.
[00:44:12] Lord God, I pray, please, as I have been so unsettled by the sermon, Lord, I pray, please, that you would help me to simply deliver your word to your people. Lord, it is a good word.
[00:44:25] Oh, it's a word that I need to hear and we need to hear. So Lord, help us to hear it and believe it, trust it, obey it. Lord, all for the mutual upbuilding of your saints. Lord, we ask these
[00:44:38] things in Christ's name. Amen. So I want to start with some final instructions that Paul gives.
[00:44:45] Then I want to look at this really good word that he leaves them with and then the reality of that good word. So here's the final instructions. I want you to imagine the situation. Imagine parents
[00:44:56] are about to go out to dinner and to leave kids home alone for the first time, right? Some of you who are parents, younger children, you don't even know what that's like yet, right? And I can tell
[00:45:07] you the first time that it happens, you are super anxious, right? Nervous, right? Because you have no idea what your kids are going to do. They're out of your control, right? And so what do you
[00:45:17] tell them? What would you imagine you would tell them? All right, got to behave, right? Make sure you know the emergency numbers, feed the dog, brush your teeth, those sorts of things, right?
[00:45:28] So Paul leaves instructions behind for the church in his absence. Six, in fact. There are six commands or six imperatives here that I want to go through step by step. Now, here's sort of a
[00:45:42] caveat. While I typically preach out of the ESV, I like the ESV. It's very good, reliable, translation, but I actually think the NSAB does a better job of pulling these out.
[00:45:54] So here's the text from the NSAB from verses 11 through 12. You'll see similarities and differences. Finally, brethren, or brothers, rejoice, be made complete, be comforted, be like-minded, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you.
[00:46:12] greet one another with a holy kiss. So first, he commands them to rejoice. That's a command.
[00:46:21] That's not a suggestion. It's a command. How can Paul command rejoicing even if I or they didn't particularly feel happy? Are we supposed to gin our emotions up? I know that some people have been in churches where that's true, where you're just sort of told you just got to be happy,
[00:46:41] right? You're sad, we just change it around. Joy is different from happiness, perhaps at least the way that we use it in English, in this way, that happiness tends to focus on the experience of an
[00:46:55] emotion. So sometimes you're just happy for no good reason, right? Joy is a little bit different because joy has an object. It has something to sink its teeth into. So you rejoice at something happening, or at this thing, or perhaps, you know, this person coming, right? And the greater the
[00:47:15] object, the greater the joy. So, for example, if I put a plate of soggy cereal and I say, enjoy, bon appetit, it's rather cruel. Now, if I put cheesecake in front of you, right, and I say,
[00:47:29] enjoy, you're like, yeah, I didn't even need you to tell me that. I'm going to enjoy this.
[00:47:33] the object of our joy is the living God. That's the object of your joy. And so that's why he said he's fine with saying rejoice, because you know what you got? You got God. So if I lack joy,
[00:47:53] then I need to run, pray, contemplate who God is. It's a little bit like sometimes you forget to appreciate your mom, right? Or your dad. Or you forget to appreciate your husband or your wife,
[00:48:05] right? And what do you need to, sometimes you take them for granted. So sometimes you got to remember what they mean to you, what they've been like, what would it be like if they weren't in
[00:48:14] your life, right? And so when you contemplate those things, you start to appreciate them. You start to actually rejoice in the other person. So you are to rejoice. Second, you are to be made complete. Now the ESV says, aim for restoration. I like be complete is a little more literal.
[00:48:31] And remember, the Corinthians had, oh, so many conflicts.
[00:48:35] They had, in 1 Corinthians, they had factions, they had lawsuits, all sorts of stuff, right?
[00:48:40] And in 2 Corinthians, they were mainly fighting against Paul, right?
[00:48:46] So they were going after these super apostles, and Paul was no good.
[00:48:49] He wasn't a good preacher or nothing.
[00:48:51] And so Paul wants the church to be reconciled to one another.
[00:48:56] He said that just a few verses earlier in verse 9 of chapter 13.
[00:49:01] And he wants them to reconcile with him.
[00:49:04] And ultimately, he wants to make sure you're reconciled with God in their conflicts.
[00:49:10] But this is why I like the NSAB a little bit better.
[00:49:13] The word in verse 11 is more expansive than just ending conflicts.
[00:49:19] That's why I like be made complete.
[00:49:21] Because what this word can mean is more like be put in order or be made mature or be perfected.
[00:49:29] He wants them to be completely mature in their faith and practice.
[00:49:35] Make that your aim.
[00:49:36] Make that your goal.
[00:49:37] Not just that you have a lot of knowledge, not that you just got a lot of books, but be mature in your faith.
[00:49:45] So rejoice, be made complete.
[00:49:48] Number three, be comforted.
[00:49:50] Now this goes all the way back to chapter one, verses three through four.
[00:49:54] God comforts us in all our affliction so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction. They are to receive and rest in the comfort that only God can provide. They're not
[00:50:08] trying to manage things on their own, but they're seeking rescue that comes from God. That's good word for us too. They are to be number four, be like-minded or literally to think the same way.
[00:50:22] I don't think that means they have to have all the same opinions.
[00:50:26] This means that they have the same values.
[00:50:28] They value the same things.
[00:50:29] And this has not been the Corinthian story so far.
[00:50:32] They've been valuing all the wrong things.
[00:50:34] The super apostles, they're slick.
[00:50:37] They say the right things.
[00:50:39] They're eloquent.
[00:50:41] And Paul says, y'all need to be on the same page here.
[00:50:46] Have the mind of Christ about things.
[00:50:49] In any church, churches can be split over the silliest of things.
[00:50:53] I was telling a new members class just yesterday about how I know of a church where the church split because somebody moved grandma's quilt from one end of the hall to the other.
[00:51:08] Now, granted, it's more than just a quilt because there are all sorts of fracture lines.
[00:51:12] That was just the spark, right?
[00:51:16] Paul says, no, I want you to have the same values.

[00:51:20] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:51:20] Same values.

[00:51:24] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:51:24] I guess, I don't know if you can call my friend now, but I'll call my friend.
[00:51:28] Chad Van Dixhorn tells a story about how he became a Christian as a teenager.
[00:51:32] And he was in a particular church that was very suspicious of any conversions.
[00:51:38] You had to really prove that you were really a Christian before we would let you be a Christian.
[00:51:44] And the pastor stood up and said, no, he's making a profession of faith.
[00:51:48] He's going to stand as a member.
[00:51:50] And the church said, if you let him in, we will fire you and we will take away your house.
[00:51:59] And the pastor stood up and he lost his house and he lost his job.
[00:52:05] They did not have the same values.
[00:52:07] The value of Christ or the value of something else.
[00:52:12] Number five, they're to live in peace.
[00:52:15] This church had all sorts of problems.
[00:52:18] They were not at peace at all.
[00:52:21] They have lawsuits, fights, infighting.
[00:52:25] They have been at odds with Paul throughout this entire letter.
[00:52:29] So if God is the God of love and peace, they should seek to be a church of love and peace.
[00:52:35] And then finally, number six, in verse 12, they are to greet one another with a holy kiss.
[00:52:40] Now, before you freak out, this is not a romantic kiss.
[00:52:46] I actually have some friends in college who, this would be like a college boy thing to do, right?
[00:52:51] They decided that they were going to freak everybody out on campus by kissing their friends on the cheek, right?
[00:52:57] Greeting each other with a holy kiss.
[00:53:00] This happens a lot.
[00:53:01] I studied abroad in Italy, so typically you kind of kiss on the side of the face, right?
[00:53:06] You actually don't make contact.
[00:53:07] But here's the point here.
[00:53:09] Whether you're kissing or giving a hug or something, right?
[00:53:12] In a non-romantic way, these are appropriate signs of affection, right?
[00:53:18] It's not just like a, hey, what's up, but it's, I'm welcoming you.
[00:53:22] I am happy that you're here.
[00:53:24] I'm glad that, I'm glad you're here.
[00:53:26] So we are to be, we are to welcome one another and be on the same page as our fellow brothers and sisters, right?
[00:53:34] Six commands.
[00:53:36] What's the point?
[00:53:37] Why give these commands?
[00:53:39] Well, like a parent who's about to be absent, Paul wants the church to be mature and loving and united, who loves Christ and loves others.
[00:53:49] And that's what ought to mark us as well.
[00:53:54] You know, if I was on my deathbed and had my children gathered around me, what would I most desire for them to know?
[00:54:02] I can tell you that at that moment I would have great clarity about what's important and what's not.
[00:54:11] You probably would too.
[00:54:13] I can tell you I could care less if my kids get a job where they can retire early in that moment.
[00:54:19] Could care less.
[00:54:21] I could care less if any of them win the Nobel Prize, right?
[00:54:26] You know what I would want more than anything else?
[00:54:28] I would tell them, I would say, walk with Christ.
[00:54:33] Walk with Christ and enjoy the blessings of a life with Christ.
[00:54:37] Do that.
[00:54:38] That's it.
[00:54:39] That's all I'm looking for.
[00:54:43] Same thing is true for the church.
[00:54:44] The aim of the church is not to have the highest steeple, the best programs, the best music.
[00:54:49] It is about a people bonded together in their love for Christ.
[00:54:52] And I'll tell you, Harbor, y'all do that really well.
[00:54:55] Keep doing that.
[00:54:57] Keep it up.
[00:54:59] Make sure you don't forget.
[00:55:02] There's a philosophical problem that philosophy classes like to use.
[00:55:07] It's called the ship of thesis paradox.
[00:55:09] So just imagine there's a ship owned by Theseus.
[00:55:12] So the thought experiment is if you had this ship, and it's historical, but it's starting to dry rot, so you start replacing little bits.
[00:55:23] So over the years, different things get replaced.
[00:55:25] At some point, there's no original part in the whole entire ship.
[00:55:30] So the philosophical question is, is it still the ship of Theseus?
[00:55:35] And there's a lot to debate, and if you want to talk to me over coffee about it, I can talk to you about it.
[00:55:38] But there's one thing to consider in all this.
[00:55:42] Well, two things, actually.
[00:55:43] The first thing is this.
[00:55:45] If you have a historic house, and it's old, and then you repair it, what do we call that?
[00:55:50] A restoration.
[00:55:53] Church is kind of like that, too.
[00:55:55] Church gets restored all the time.
[00:55:58] And second, you know, at the end of the day, whether it's Theseus' ship or not, does it float?
[00:56:04] Does it float still?
[00:56:06] Or is it just like a, is it just a monument?
[00:56:10] Every church will have all of its people replaced if it sticks around long enough.
[00:56:20] There is not one member who is going to be here forever, sorry to say.
[00:56:25] All of the pastors at one point will go.
[00:56:29] Now, maybe it's in 50 years, but we'll go, right?
[00:56:32] All the elders will go.
[00:56:34] The music team will go.
[00:56:35] The AV team, all the people.
[00:56:37] Is it still a church?
[00:56:39] Does it still function?
[00:56:41] Does it float or does it not?
[00:56:44] So the question is not the skilled people that we have here, the pastor that we have.
[00:56:50] The question is, does the church hold to the gospel or does it not?
[00:56:58] Does it do what it was meant to do?
[00:57:01] We are all replaceable, brothers and sisters, myself at the top of the list.
[00:57:08] The gospel is not.
[00:57:09] So, Paul says, I want you to know this. I want you to remember these things. I want the church to float. But how can it stay true? Because after all, that's the tricky thing about leaving your
[00:57:25] kids at home. You leave your kids at home, you know what they can do? Anything they want to do, right? Mom and dad know that kids can be jealous. Kids can fight. Kids desire candy. And when mom
[00:57:39] and dad aren't around. They can eat however much they want. So what will hold them accountable when mom and dad are gone, right? Now, kids, you know, parents, we have a few things in our arsenal,
[00:57:53] right? The one thing we have in our arsenal is threats, right? Don't you dare do this or else, fill in the blank. Sometimes we just hope for the best, you know, good luck. But most parents,
[00:58:13] most responsible parents, you know, if their kids aren't ready, what do they do? They get a babysitter, right? There's a fancy Latin term for this, and a babysitter comes, they're in loco parentis, stand in the place of the parent, they watch. You need a presence to watch over them, make sure
[00:58:29] they're doing what they're supposed to do, right? Now, so what Paul is offering here, I'm going to argue, is a final good word to remind them of God's special presence with them. I'm gone, says Paul,
[00:58:45] but God is not. So let's look at that. So here's the good word at the end. Verse 14, the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit to
[00:58:57] be with you all. This is typical of what we call a benediction, or literally it's a good word.
[00:59:06] You see these sorts of things all over the place in scripture. Pastors typically give a benediction at the end. I do that all the time. The structure of this good word or benediction is thoroughly
[00:59:17] Trinitarian. What I mean by that is Christians hold to the teaching that there's a God. God's nature is Trinity, meaning he's one God, not three, but he is three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He is without parts. He is without priorities or inequalities. So here you have
[00:59:41] Jesus, the Son. You have God, I think I'm going to go around saying standing for the Father there, and then you have the Holy Spirit. This parallels with, for example, in Matthew 28, verse 19,
[00:59:54] where pastors are supposed to baptize in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
[01:00:00] So here's a text that shows the Trinity.
[01:00:04] Now I want to just encourage you, some of you are like, yeah, I know all that.
[01:00:08] Some of you, you might find that sort of thing difficult.
[01:00:11] The Trinity is a difficult teaching to understand.
[01:00:13] But just remember, God has no equal.
[01:00:17] He is beyond anything in creation.
[01:00:19] so it kind of logically makes sense that he there we would it would be hard for us to wrap our brains around who and what he is right we can only understand who he is by how he reveals himself and
[01:00:31] so he's trying to describe to us like calculus and i'm still on like one plus one so paul connects with each person of the trinity in verse 14 three gifts or three benefits of a saving relationship
[01:00:50] with God. It's grace, love, fellowship. And I want you to notice that the beginning of each one of those benefits starts with the, right? I'm an Ohioan by birth, right? And so us Ohioans are somewhat obnoxious when we correct people. It's not Ohio State, it's the Ohio State, the OSU.
[01:01:18] Um, here you have the article in front of grace, love, and fellowship. The grace, the love, the fellowship. This is not generic love. This is name brand love. This is name brand grace, name brand fellowship. It comes from God. He owns it. And so Paul wishes that these benefits
[01:01:43] be with you. That's what he says. That's the main action. Be with you. To be with you means to be in company or together with, that these benefits would stick to the Corinthians like glue. So what are these benefits exactly that Paul is leaving them with? Number one,
[01:02:05] the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. Our relationship with God outside of this grace is one of animosity. The natural state of human beings after the fall is that we are enemies of God. James 4 says we're enemies. We are by nature children of wrath, Ephesians chapter 2. So no
[01:02:31] matter how many good deeds you think you've done, no matter how nice you think you are, you are an enemy of God until you are reconciled to God. There's no other way. And so the change only
[01:02:45] comes from the unearned favor of grace that we have in Christ. Jesus says in John 14, I am the way. Notice not a way, the way. And the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
[01:03:03] There is one way to be reconciled to God, and that's through the grace of Christ. What did I do to deserve such kindness from the king of the universe? Nothing. Worse than nothing. We provide
[01:03:17] every reason, every single day, why we should be rejected, and he answers that with his life and with his death. Grace makes life worth living and eternity attainable. I love how Thomas Watson describes grace. Just sort of bask in this, if you will, the Puritan writer Thomas Watson.
[01:03:42] He says, grace is a string of pearls with which the church, Christ's bride, is adorned.
[01:03:49] Grace is the flower of the soul, which Christ delights to smell.
[01:03:54] Grace is to the soul what the eye is to the body, what the sun is to the world, what the diamond to the ring.
[01:04:01] A soul decked with grace is as the dove covered with silver wings and golden feathers.
[01:04:08] The believers' graces are weapons to defend them, wings to elevate them, jewels to enrich them, spices to perfume them, stars to adorn them, cordials to revive them, and evidences for heaven when death is near. That's what Paul wants to remind them of, the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.
[01:04:33] Second, they receive the love of God.
[01:04:37] It's the love of God that drives God.
[01:04:43] God's love for his glory and for his creation means that he necessarily judges sin.
[01:04:51] If he did not love his creatures, he would never judge sin.
[01:04:54] In the same way that if a father didn't love his kids, he wouldn't care what happened to them.
[01:05:00] He wouldn't care what destructive patterns were in their life.
[01:05:02] if he wouldn't care what enemies would befall them, you have to understand the reason why hell exists is because God loves.
[01:05:12] It's also his love that causes him to save sinners.
[01:05:18] Ephesians chapter one, verse four, before the foundation of the world, God chose us in love or by love.
[01:05:27] That's his motivation.
[01:05:31] Now, that's true back then.
[01:05:34] He loved us then, but does he still love us now?
[01:05:37] That's the question.
[01:05:39] And I think this doesn't make a ton of sense to us as Americans because we tend to hear love and we think fuzzy feelings.
[01:05:46] You know, you fall in love, you fall out of love.
[01:05:50] It's like a cloud, right?
[01:05:53] I've had many opportunities to watch my kids do sports or music performances, things like that.
[01:05:59] And here's the thing about a good dad.
[01:06:02] I hope I'm a good dad.
[01:06:03] A good dad is going to cheer just as loudly when their kids are succeeding or failing, right? Why? Why don't I cheer louder when they're successful? Because I love them.
[01:06:18] Because I am committed to my kids, whether they benefit me or not, whether they make me look good or not, because they're my kids. This is a taste and a fragment, a fallen fragment, of the love that God has for you.
[01:06:37] Zephaniah 3.17, this is mind-blowing.
[01:06:41] The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save, and here it is, he will rejoice over you with gladness.
[01:06:53] He will quiet you by his love.
[01:06:55] He will exalt over you with loud singing.
[01:07:02] When he thinks of you, he sings.
[01:07:05] do you see how great the father's love is for you so why do we live as if god is just putting up with us when we do that we are actually disparaging god's character because we think that our
[01:07:25] weaknesses will exhaust god's love like i i know you know they might love you or you but me you know i mean i'm just so tough to deal with right sometimes we complain that god doesn't love us
[01:07:39] because we don't get what we want.
[01:07:42] We act like petulant children who accuse their parents of never loving us and never doing anything for us because they didn't buy me a new bike.
[01:07:51] If you doubt God's love this morning, if you need proof, historic proof, look at the cross.
[01:07:58] There it is.
[01:08:00] It's investigatable.
[01:08:03] It's where the eternal Son was sent for you and died for you.
[01:08:07] So we have the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, we have the love of God, and we have the fellowship of the Holy Spirit.
[01:08:13] Fellowship means closeness and constant companionship.
[01:08:17] It's intimate.
[01:08:23] God's presence fills us and his church.
[01:08:28] And you can't hide from the Spirit.
[01:08:32] Listen to Psalm 139.
[01:08:34] Where shall I go from your spirit?
[01:08:37] Or where shall I flee from your presence?
[01:08:39] If I ascend to heaven, you're there.
[01:08:43] If I make my bed in Sheol, you're there.
[01:08:45] If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the outermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.
[01:08:56] You may think God is very far away from you.
[01:08:59] He's far away from you in your sin, far away from you when you are experiencing calamity, far away from you because you are utterly lonely.
[01:09:10] But I'm telling you, he dwells in the midst of his children.
[01:09:15] We're like a blind child crying out for mom and dad.
[01:09:18] Mom and dad have been there the whole time.
[01:09:23] So what is Paul doing with these words?
[01:09:25] What is he supposed to do with these, right?
[01:09:27] Is this just nice theology or just a wish or is it something else?
[01:09:31] So this really points to the reality of these words.
[01:09:36] That's where we're going next.
[01:09:37] This benediction acts as a kind of prayer and a kind of declaration.
[01:09:42] So first, it's like a prayer, right?
[01:09:45] These things be with you follows a pattern of other greetings and farewells.
[01:09:51] In the Bible, sometimes, the English Bible, we tend to add the word may just to show the mood of the verb.
[01:09:58] It's to communicate a humble asking.
[01:10:02] For example, 2 Peter 1.
[01:10:04] May the grace and peace be multiplied to you.
[01:10:07] It's a wish. It's a hope.
[01:10:09] And so if I wish this, who am I wishing it of?
[01:10:14] The universe in general?
[01:10:16] No, it's from God, right?
[01:10:20] We're not wishing it from Paul.
[01:10:21] You can't make it happen.
[01:10:24] So verse 14 is suggesting a respectful, humble, reasonable request of God to please bless the Corinthian church.
[01:10:34] It's a prayer by Paul over the Corinthians.
[01:10:37] May God do this.
[01:10:40] Now, here's a little bit of trivia.
[01:10:41] You know, you do this actually all the time.
[01:10:44] The English word goodbye is actually a combination of a few words.
[01:10:50] It's an old word.
[01:10:52] It's a combination of God be with ye, or God be with ye.
[01:10:58] Goodbye.
[01:10:59] Every time you say goodbye, you say an old English prayer to every person that you meet.
[01:11:09] This is a prayer.
[01:11:11] It's also a declaration.
[01:11:12] We pray for what we don't have often, but here the Corinthians already have.
[01:11:19] by the fact that they're saved.
[01:11:21] They already have God's grace and God's love and God's fellowship.
[01:11:26] So why would the Corinthians need to hear this declaration?
[01:11:29] Well, here's why, I think.
[01:11:33] I'm going to call this Colvard's Corollary.
[01:11:35] It's really Calvin, but I'm going to name it anyway.
[01:11:40] Whenever there's a command in Scripture, and it comes from God's perspective, so God's command or apostle or prophet's command, You can assume that there's something, whether it's sin or doubt or the world, that is working in the opposite direction.
[01:11:54] For example, God says, do not murder.
[01:11:57] Now, why would he have to tell us not to murder?
[01:11:59] Because there's something in society or something in me that would want to murder.
[01:12:03] Working against it.
[01:12:05] Paul says he wants the grace and love and fellowship of God to be with the Corinthians because he's assuming that there's something in them or something in their church, some sin influence that is tempting them to doubt God's blessing and promises. In moments of doubt
[01:12:26] and pain and failure, God can feel very far away. It can feel like there is no rescue, no hope, and so what good are Paul's flowery words? These blessings do nothing at all. You see, he's working
[01:12:41] against it. There's an interesting parallel. We read this earlier this morning from Numbers chapter six, verse 22 through 27, this is what's called the Aaronic, not ironic, but Aaronic, like Aaron, Aaronic blessing. God tells the priest to proclaim regularly these words. Just read them.
[01:13:02] The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face to shine on you. The Lord lift up his countenance and give you peace, right? Face to shine could mean literal shine. It could also
[01:13:11] mean smile. You could go either way. Notice the name of the Lord is pronounced three times.
[01:13:18] The Lord, the Lord, the Lord. Here in 2 Corinthians, we have the Lord pronounced three ways, Father, Son, Holy Spirit. And then at the end of this, we get an explanation. God explains why he wants the priest to do this on top of the people. God says in verse 27, number six, he says,
[01:13:38] so shall they, the priests, put my name upon the people of Israel. When the blessing is pronounced, When Paul communicates this to the church, he is stamping God's name upon them.
[01:13:58] In other words, to proclaim and declare these people are the living God's people.
[01:14:07] This belongs to Christ.
[01:14:10] The declaration comes with a promise.
[01:14:14] You, you have God's name upon you.
[01:14:17] And so for you and for you alone, believer, is grace.
[01:14:22] and love, and fellowship that will never leave you, Paul is pronouncing God is with them.
[01:14:33] The answer to fearful, downcast Christians who doubt that God cares for them, and wayward Christians who have no fear of their sin, it's all the same. The triune God is with you.
[01:14:44] He's with you. So, Paul is not invoking some flimsy wish, well, I hope, Corinthians, you'll be you'll be good. But he's laying on their minds the reality of all the benefits of God's saving, loving, fellowshipping presence that would follow them to greater and greater degrees than they
[01:15:04] already have and that they would see it. And that's what you need to see this morning.
[01:15:10] Would you see it? Would you see the song and story of your life as a harmony and eternal drumbeat of the grace of Christ, the love of the Father, and the ever-abiding Spirit in all the highs
[01:15:26] and the lows of life? Would you receive and rest on those promises? And if so, let God's presence and blessing mature you and grow you to shape you and us into believers and a church
[01:15:45] that always sing God's praises, that always humble ourselves in repentance, that always strive

[01:15:50] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[01:15:50] to love one another. Let's pray together. Lord God, we ask, please, that you would,

[01:15:58] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[01:15:58] Lord, that you would remind us of the identity and purpose that we already have in you.
[01:16:06] Lord, I pray that for those who do not have that yet, Lord, would you make it known to them.
[01:16:11] Would you call people to yourself? And so, Lord God, I pray, please, grow us, help us to rejoice, Help us to be complete.
[01:16:22] Help us to live at peace.
[01:16:23] Lord, all for your glory and for our good.
[01:16:26] We ask these things in Jesus' name.
[01:16:31] As the elders make their way forward, I had a friend of mine who had a woman come to his church, his pastor.
[01:16:45] A woman comes to his church, 35, 40 years old, becomes a believer.
[01:16:50] and through the relationship with him and his wife and this lady that at some point they did something quite unusual.
[01:17:01] She had no family really to speak of and so at age like 42, they adopted her.
[01:17:11] Changed her name and everything, right?
[01:17:14] You know, so anytime she shows up at their house or they're at a doctor's appointment or something like that, right?
[01:17:20] She can say, oh, I'm part of the family.
[01:17:23] This meal, you get to come because you're part of the family.
[01:17:28] You have been, by God's grace, adopted in, and so you get to dine at the family table.
[01:17:34] This bread and this wine and juice, these are common, ordinary things.
[01:17:40] Bought at a store. Nothing fancy about it.
[01:17:43] But what does happen here is that when a believer, by faith, eats and drinks, They are eating and drinking to be reminded of the blessings and benefits of the relationship you have with Christ.
[01:17:56] That's a spiritual reality here because 1 Corinthians 11 warns, the Corinthians, the same church we were just talking about, warns them that you ought not to eat and drink unless you are able to examine yourselves.
[01:18:10] Unless you're able to discern the body and the blood.
[01:18:13] And so if you have not made a public profession of faith in Christ yet, let these things pass you by.
[01:18:19] Because it would be actually spiritually dangerous for you to eat and drink the symbols of knowing Christ when you don't.
[01:18:24] It would be lying, actually.
[01:18:26] We don't want that for you.
[01:18:27] Let these things pass you by, but pray.
[01:18:30] If you don't know what that looks like, come see me or one of these gentlemen.
[01:18:33] We would love for you to know what it looks like to trust in Christ.
[01:18:37] It was on a night in which Jesus was betrayed.
[01:18:39] He took the bread and he broke it and he said, this is my body given for you. Eat of it, all of you, in remembrance of me. Here at Harbor, we like to serve family style. So hold on to your piece of bread till everybody's been served.
[01:18:51] Then we'll all eat together. And we like to observe silence during communion. I know kids will shuffle around. That's fine. But take a moment to open up your Bible. Take a moment to pray, to meditate upon God's word, to think about Christ. Use the silence and the space to behold
[01:19:09] and to worship your Savior.

[01:21:55] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[01:21:55] By Christ given for you, let's eat in remembrance of him.

[01:22:04] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[01:22:04] Same manner, after the supper, Jesus took the cup.
[01:22:07] He blessed and he said, this is my blood in the new covenant, shed for many for forgiveness for sins.
[01:22:12] Our sins are forgiven because Christ went to the cross for us, paid it all for us, so we might have eternal life in him.
[01:22:21] Here at Harvard, we have both wine and grape juice.
[01:22:23] Wine is on the outermost ring.
[01:22:25] All the inner rings are juice.
[01:22:27] And just like the bread, if you want to hold on to your cup until everybody's been served.
[01:22:30] Then we'll drink together.

[01:25:04] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[01:25:04] The blood of Christ was shed for us.
[01:25:05] Let's drink in remembrance of him.
[01:25:09] Let's pray.
[01:25:10] Lord God, as you have poured into us your amazing and wonderful love and grace, Lord, how you have been with us and shared in our lives, Lord,

[01:25:25] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[01:25:25] as we have shared in yours.
[01:25:26] Lord, we pray, please, you would help us to abound in more love for you, more love for one another, all to your glory.
[01:25:34] We pray these things in Christ's name.
[01:25:37] Would you please stand as we sing our closing song together?

[01:25:39] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[01:25:39] If from their day Dressed to be by faith Before the world confessed Thy name, O Jesus Their fortress and their might The Lord their captain Soon to praise the Christ The rising rises of the ocean
[01:28:08] Before we close, don't forget we've got snacks and coffee in the gathering room to the right.

[01:28:46] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[01:28:46] We've got Sunday school at a quarter after the hour.
[01:28:49] Adults are going to be meeting here.
[01:28:51] Special for today.
[01:28:52] Come to adult Sunday school.
[01:28:54] You get a gift.
[01:28:56] Maybe it's not that special, but you still get it anyway.
[01:29:00] So receive now the Lord's blessing, the Lord's name upon you as you go out into the world.
[01:29:07] May the Lord bless you and keep you.
[01:29:08] The Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.
[01:29:12] The Lord lift up his countenance and give you peace.

[01:29:19] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[01:29:19] Hey, Tim.