Dale Partridge - Peace After Pardon： Confession and Communion in Christ

00:00:00.000 Well, amen, and praise God, it's wonderful to be back in my home church with you all.

00:00:14.680 This morning's liturgy couldn't have worked out any better for the sermon that is going

00:00:19.880 to be preached this morning, because the sermon is on liturgy.

00:00:24.060 the whole part of our liturgy has surrounded this morning the idea of liturgy of coming before god

00:00:35.300 one of the songs that we sang this morning how sweet and awful is the place

00:00:43.220 i could barely sing verse two because i was so choked up and of course you had us sing it twice

00:00:51.640 while all our hearts and all our songs join to admire the feast each of us cries

00:01:00.940 with thankful tongue lord why was i a guest

00:01:06.100 this morning we're going to see a little bit about why we're guests

00:01:16.440 we're going to see a little bit about why the lord invites us to be guests at his table

00:01:23.100 and to do that i want to introduce this sermon with a story

00:01:28.120 russell conwell in 1869 told a story of a farmer in south africa who owned a modest piece of land

00:01:40.720 He lived simply, but he longed for more.

00:01:46.020 He began hearing reports of great diamond discoveries,

00:01:49.540 men striking it rich, becoming legends overnight.

00:01:53.680 And the thought burned in him,

00:01:56.080 if only I could find diamonds,

00:01:58.900 then I would be truly wealthy and truly happy.

00:02:03.540 So he sold his farm, left his family,

00:02:07.120 and set out across the continent, searching for treasure.

00:02:12.080 For years, he wandered, chasing rumors of diamond fields,

00:02:16.660 but he never found any.

00:02:19.260 His fortune was wasted.

00:02:21.840 His hope was crushed.

00:02:23.980 And in despair, he threw himself into a river and died.

00:02:30.100 Meanwhile, the man who bought this farm was out working the land.

00:02:35.540 One day, while leading his mule to the stream, he noticed something glittering in the shallow water.

00:02:42.400 He picked it up. It was a stone, brilliant in the sun. It was a diamond.

00:02:49.480 Soon, geologists came and discovered that that very farm where the first man had abandoned

00:02:55.040 was sitting on one of the richest diamond mines in the world.

00:03:00.260 The first farmer had been living on acres of diamonds, but he never saw it.

00:03:10.140 Brothers and sisters, this is how many of us approach worship.

00:03:17.620 We spend our lives searching for spiritual riches out there,

00:03:22.040 in conferences, in experiences, in emotional highs, and in personal piety.

00:03:30.260 While all along, every Lord's Day, God spreads before us acres of diamonds in the gospel-shaped liturgy of his church.

00:03:42.000 The word, confession, absolution, and the table are not routine.

00:03:50.500 They're treasure.

00:03:52.840 Week after week, God gives us diamonds.

00:03:56.660 And too often, we walk past them as though they were pebbles.

00:04:00.260 The truth is, the greatest riches of grace are not hidden.

00:04:08.540 They're right in front of us, placed there by God himself.

00:04:14.480 But like that farmer living on acres of diamonds, we will miss them unless our eyes are opened.

00:04:22.980 Every Sunday, we're walking across a field of treasure.

00:04:26.800 In our liturgy, we move through the gospel itself.

00:04:30.260 We hear the word, we confess our sin, we receive an assurance of pardon, and then we feast at the Lord's table.

00:04:41.380 But because it's familiar, many of us overlook the structure and we miss the deliberate focus.

00:04:56.340 We treat worship as ordinary.

00:05:01.100 We treat it as something that's commonplace.

00:05:03.620 We treat it as something that is everyday.

00:05:07.380 But we miss that it is covenant renewal.

00:05:11.860 The living God is binding himself to his people each and every week.

00:05:18.280 So let me ask you, when was the last time you heard a sermon,

00:05:23.360 not just on confession, but on the structure of worship itself?

00:05:30.520 When's the last time you heard a pastor explain to you why we do what we do on Sunday?

00:05:38.180 For many Christians, worship is something to passively receive or something simply to get through.

00:05:47.240 We may love certain songs or be helped by the sermon, but we rarely stop to ask,

00:05:54.260 why is our liturgy shaped the way that it is?

00:05:57.020 Does it matter that we confess our sins together?

00:06:01.980 Does it matter who declares the assurance of pardon?

00:06:05.880 Does it matter that confession comes before communion?

00:06:10.400 Yes, all these things matter.

00:06:14.680 It matters because the Bible presents a pattern

00:06:18.000 for how sinners draw near to a living God.

00:06:22.160 from sinai's mountain to the tabernacle sacrifices from the psalms of david to the supper of christ

00:06:30.860 we see the same rhythm god speaks his people confess he declares pardon and then he welcomes

00:06:41.520 them to his table. This is not Presbyterian tradition, or Anglican tradition, or Reformed

00:06:52.580 tradition. It's God's covenantal tradition, embedded into scripture from beginning to end.

00:07:02.100 And here's why we need this sermon this morning. Without understanding this pattern,

00:07:08.620 we risk misunderstanding worship itself.

00:07:15.620 And when worship slips into empty motions,

00:07:19.420 it becomes empty worship,

00:07:22.340 as Pastor Dale exhorted us this morning about.

00:07:26.660 God has said through the prophet Isaiah,

00:07:30.160 this people draw near to me with their mouth

00:07:32.440 and honor me with their lips

00:07:33.760 while their hearts are far from me

00:07:35.960 and fear of me is a commandment taught by men.

00:07:42.500 Church, this is a danger.

00:07:46.140 Lips that move, but hearts that drift.

00:07:53.760 God, in his mercy, gives us the gospel order for liturgy.

00:07:59.980 He gives it to us to keep our worship real,

00:08:02.820 to keep our hearts close to him and to draw us into his presence week by week.

00:08:10.160 So today, I want to show you why this pattern matters.

00:08:15.480 We'll begin by seeing how God's word prepares us for confession.

00:08:20.860 From there, we'll consider why confession is the right response to hearing from the Lord.

00:08:27.000 Then we will look at the assurance of pardon,

00:08:29.200 what it is, and why it must be spoken by one who is lawfully ordained.

00:08:36.080 And lastly, we'll see how all of this leads us to the table of the Lord,

00:08:43.020 where the forgiven are welcomed with fellowship and joy.

00:08:51.260 Let's begin where God begins, in his word.

00:08:55.420 Turn with me in your Bibles to Leviticus chapter 9.

00:08:58.980 Leviticus chapter 9, verses 6 through 7.

00:09:06.320 And as we're doing that, I want to address something on the front end here.

00:09:11.620 Some of you may be thinking, isn't Leviticus Old Testament stuff?

00:09:17.940 Isn't that something that they did in the past, but not something that's for Christians today?

00:09:22.620 Okay? Christians today tend to have an unhealthy relationship with the Old Testament. 0.96

00:09:30.540 So I want to bring some clarity here.

00:09:34.060 The sacrifices themselves have passed away in Jesus Christ.

00:09:39.020 The pattern, or the grammar, that a holy God gives in the Old Testament for how sinners are to be reconciled remains.

00:09:48.160 the new testament assumes that we learn the shape of worship from the old testament

00:09:55.920 leviticus is not strange ground for the church it's the soil where christ work was first planted

00:10:05.440 hebrews reminds us in hebrews 9 22 without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of

00:10:13.540 sins. Paul takes that principle of sacrifice and applies it to the supper, where he says in 1

00:10:21.260 Corinthians 10, 16, the cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of

00:10:29.060 Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? In other

00:10:37.400 words, the supper is not a symbol, but a true sharing of Christ himself. And if we want to

00:10:48.180 grasp why we first hear the word, confess our sins, receive pardon, and then finally feast at the

00:10:55.600 table, we must begin with Leviticus. Because it is there that God first taught his people

00:11:03.680 that cleansing blood precedes fellowship at the meal.

00:11:12.560 So Leviticus chapter 9, verses 6 through 7, says this.

00:11:20.980 Then Moses said,

00:11:22.940 This is the thing which the Lord commanded you to do,

00:11:26.700 and the glory of the Lord will appear to you.

00:11:30.020 And Moses said to Aaron,

00:11:31.600 Go to the altar.

00:11:34.180 Offer your sin offering and your burnt offering.

00:11:37.380 And make atonement for yourself and for the people.

00:11:40.360 And offer the offering of the people.

00:11:43.080 And make atonement for them as the Lord commanded.

00:11:48.400 Notice the sequence in this passage of Scripture.

00:11:53.100 It begins with the word being proclaimed.

00:11:56.820 It says, this is the thing the Lord commanded you to do.

00:12:01.940 It's from the mouth of God that worship begins.

00:12:07.300 Next, it says, offer your sin offering.

00:12:12.700 This is where we see confession.

00:12:15.760 You have to agree with God in order to offer a sin offering.

00:12:20.320 That agreement is that you are a sinner.

00:12:23.860 And that you need grace.

00:12:25.460 word is proclaimed and then confession follows next it says make atonement for yourself and for

00:12:37.420 the people atonement and forgiveness is now proclaimed to the people of god it's told to

00:12:45.920 them that they are forgiven, that their sin is done away. And lastly, it's promised in this passage

00:12:56.880 that the glory of God will be with them. It says in verse 6, the glory of the Lord will appear to

00:13:05.020 you. This is the pattern of liturgy, of word, confession, atonement, forgiveness, and fellowship

00:13:16.980 with God. This promise is not empty. Look later in the chapter at Leviticus 9, 22 through 24.

00:13:26.800 It says,

00:13:56.800 When all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces.

00:14:04.240 You see the order.

00:14:07.680 Absolution, then blessing.

00:14:11.580 Aaron lifts up his hands and blesses the people.

00:14:15.720 Then glory appears.

00:14:18.380 God's presence is made visible.

00:14:20.300 Then the people respond with shouting, falling down on their faces in reverence and in awe.

00:14:30.880 They're not left in guilt, nor kept at a distance from God.

00:14:39.020 They are pardoned, blessed, and drawn near to him.

00:14:46.520 This is the same rhythm that appears at Sinai.

00:14:49.060 After the word is proclaimed and the covenant blood is sprinkled on the people and on the altar,

00:14:54.900 we read in Exodus 24, 8 and 11.

00:14:58.640 Then Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said,

00:15:03.380 This is the blood of the covenant, which the Lord has made with you according to all these words.

00:15:10.920 So they saw God, and they ate and drank.

00:15:15.260 once again the word is proclaimed and received the blood is applied for cleansing

00:15:22.680 then communion follows they saw god and they ate and drank

00:15:27.720 blood then meal atonement then table forgiveness then fellowship

00:15:37.260 this is no accident it's the way god has always met with his people

00:15:44.040 and it is the same order that shapes our worship week by week

00:15:49.800 there's a lot more to our order of worship than i'm going to cover today

00:15:54.940 but the four main movements that i want you to see from scripture

00:16:00.020 is word, confession, absolution, and table.

00:16:05.920 We need to see that in the scriptures this morning.

00:16:10.980 So let's look more closely at these sections of the liturgy.

00:16:17.140 Let's look at the ministry of the word.

00:16:21.620 Leviticus 1.1 says,

00:16:23.280 The Lord called to Moses and spoke to him from the tabernacle.

00:16:27.760 Before any sacrifices were made, before any of the sacrifices that God commands later in this book happen,

00:16:39.300 God's word announces that there's a meeting.

00:16:43.740 Moses announces, this is the thing which the Lord commanded you to do,

00:16:49.440 and the glory of the Lord will appear to you, in the passage we read in Leviticus 9.

00:16:53.820 worship begins not with our feelings but with divine speech the word at the beginning of the

00:17:04.260 service is designed to lead God's people to repentance because through the word we are

00:17:10.980 exposed for who we really are this is important because without the word we cannot see ourselves

00:17:20.540 clearly. Sin is deceitful. We love it too much to deal with it on our own.

00:17:30.840 Hebrews 3, 12 through 13 says, take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil,

00:17:37.740 unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort one another every day,

00:17:45.380 as long as it is called today, that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

00:17:54.900 J.C. Ryle warns us in his book on holiness. He says, quote,

00:18:00.620 We are too apt to forget that temptation to sin will rarely present itself to us in its true colors.

00:18:07.960 Sin comes to us like Judas, with a kiss, and like Joab, with an outstretched hand and flattering 0.74

00:18:16.500 words. Sin rarely seems sin at first beginnings. Let us then watch and pray, lest we fall into 0.84

00:18:26.360 temptation. End quote. This is why we need the Word of God. Not just to comfort us, but to cut

00:18:36.600 us. Left to ourselves, sin flatters and deceives. It never shows its true face,

00:18:47.700 but God's word does what nothing else can. It pierces through sin's disguise.

00:18:56.640 Hebrews 4.12 says, For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any

00:19:02.980 two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit and joints and marrow and is a

00:19:09.740 discerner of the thoughts and intentions of the heart. Church, the Bible does not simply inform us.

00:19:21.740 It exposes us. It lays bare the secret concerns of our hearts and it drags the hidden sins

00:19:31.940 into the light. And this

00:19:35.880 is a mercy. Because only when sin

00:19:40.020 is exposed can it be confessed. And only

00:19:43.940 when it is confessed can it be forgiven.

00:19:47.560 If the word never wounds you, it will never

00:19:51.600 heal you. Let me say that again.

00:19:55.800 If the word never wounds you, it will never

00:19:59.920 heal you.

00:20:03.620 We need the word of God to pierce us

00:20:06.720 so that we confess our sins

00:20:10.100 to a living God.

00:20:15.500 Section 2.

00:20:17.780 The ministry of confession.

00:20:21.500 Leviticus 5.5 says,

00:20:24.460 He shall confess that he has sinned in that thing.

00:20:26.980 the worshiper was not allowed to hide in generalities sin had to be named owned and confessed

00:20:39.460 and john tells us to do the same thing it says in first john 1 9 if we confess our sins

00:20:49.100 he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness

00:20:56.020 Do you see the grace here?

00:21:01.900 God does not leave us wallowing in guilt.

00:21:06.540 He calls us to lay it down.

00:21:11.200 Confession is not drudgery.

00:21:13.700 It's the doorway to mercy.

00:21:17.100 And until sin is named, it cannot be forgiven.

00:21:20.960 But once it is confessed, God is faithful and just to cleanse us of our sins.

00:21:32.300 That is why before the table, there must always be truth.

00:21:38.360 Leviticus describes that truth-telling led to cleansing.

00:21:43.000 It says in several places throughout Leviticus,

00:21:46.240 He shall put his hand on the head of the sin offering.

00:21:49.540 When the sacrifice was about to be made, the priest would put his hand on the sin offering as a visual sign that sin is being transferred onto this sacrifice.

00:22:02.280 This was no casual gesture.

00:22:06.680 The verb here for to place his hand in the Hebrew is samach.

00:22:13.200 It means to lean hard or to press down on.

00:22:19.540 the worshiper wasn't brushing the animal as if to say i've made a mistake

00:22:26.840 no he was transferring the crushing weight of guilt his guilt onto another

00:22:36.780 it was a public confession in action he's saying in this action this sin is mine this guilt is mine

00:22:47.960 But now it rests here on this substitute instead of me.

00:22:55.280 Think of it like someone with a broken leg.

00:22:59.160 They don't just tap a crutch.

00:23:02.700 They lean their whole weight on that crutch.

00:23:07.060 Because without it, they're going to fall over.

00:23:11.080 That's what confession is.

00:23:14.620 Not brushing lightly against Christ.

00:23:17.960 but placing the full burden of guilt on him,

00:23:22.580 the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world.

00:23:27.580 You cannot carry it.

00:23:31.340 You alone cannot bear the crushing weight and guilt of sin.

00:23:37.820 But here is God's promise to you.

00:23:42.140 If you confess your sins,

00:23:44.660 he is faithful

00:23:48.080 to cleanse you of your sins

00:23:52.880 confession then is not despair

00:23:58.620 it's trust

00:24:01.120 it's faith

00:24:03.860 it's leaning on Christ until his word

00:24:08.300 not your feelings has the last say to you

00:24:12.080 that your sin is forgiven.

00:24:18.240 This is exactly what the Levitical drama pointed to.

00:24:23.360 The worshiper leaned his hand on the head

00:24:26.040 and confessed,

00:24:29.700 and the substitute bore the guilt.

00:24:33.800 But the shadows of Leviticus give way to the substance in Christ.

00:24:38.260 Isaiah 53.6 says,

00:24:42.620 The Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

00:24:46.360 2 Corinthians 5.21 says,

00:24:49.100 He made him who knew no sin to be sin for us,

00:24:52.380 that we might become the righteousness of God in him.

00:24:57.500 And John 1.29 says,

00:25:00.020 Behold the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world.

00:25:04.580 when we confess as a body of believers

00:25:10.340 in corporate worship

00:25:12.240 we're not leaning on a bull or a goat

00:25:16.400 we're leaning on something

00:25:19.700 much more wonderful

00:25:21.400 the true substitute

00:25:24.580 himself 0.60

00:25:26.020 Jesus Christ

00:25:27.620 confession is our way of saying

00:25:31.960 this is mine

00:25:34.340 but he bears it.

00:25:38.280 This belongs on his head, not mine.

00:25:46.920 When the minister proclaims the assurance of pardon from Scripture,

00:25:52.240 this is not a wishful encouragement.

00:25:55.180 It's God's own voice declaring the same verdict he spoke in Leviticus,

00:25:59.940 that it shall be forgiven him.

00:26:05.300 Here's the pastoral truth to hold on to.

00:26:09.440 Confession is not self-pity.

00:26:12.420 And absolution is not wishful thinking.

00:26:16.200 Confession is the leaning of guilt onto Christ.

00:26:20.740 Absolution is the Father's public verdict to you,

00:26:25.280 forgiven because the Lamb has borne it.

00:26:30.400 This is what we do on Sundays.

00:26:35.020 This is why it's important for us to worship together as a body.

00:26:40.260 This is not something you can do in your home.

00:26:45.200 This is something that needs to be done together as one people, as it always has been done.

00:26:54.080 Do not neglect the Lord's day.

00:26:58.600 There is diamonds in this day.

00:27:04.340 we've seen that the word pierces us and convicts us.

00:27:11.320 It reveals sin to us.

00:27:14.480 We've seen that we need to confess our sins

00:27:17.560 so that our sins might be placed on a substitute.

00:27:23.180 But now I want to show us the ministry of reconciliation,

00:27:27.720 of absolution that is declared over God's people.

00:27:34.340 We have a struggle today in our conscience.

00:27:39.240 We struggle to believe that we're truly forgiven.

00:27:44.320 Many of you know what it feels like to confess a sin,

00:27:47.960 to hear the gospel, and still walk away with whispers of shame hounding you.

00:27:54.880 Don't you?

00:27:56.500 I know you do, because I felt this too.

00:27:58.720 this is why in god's kindness he built absolution into our public worship

00:28:08.800 absolution is the voice of heaven breaking through the noise of your heart

00:28:15.520 leviticus drives this home for us with holy repetition it says the priest shall make

00:28:24.420 atonement for him, and it shall be forgiven him. It says it in Leviticus 4.20, 26, 31, 35, verses 5

00:28:36.500 and 10. Again and again and again, God declares that confession happens, and then you are forgiven.

00:28:46.000 He does it so that Israel wouldn't miss it. 0.96

00:28:52.040 And he does it today so that we don't miss it. 0.94

00:28:57.940 God knows how quick we are to doubt.

00:29:01.600 How slow we are to rest in his mercy.

00:29:06.060 We all are little legalists inside.

00:29:09.920 We want to contribute something to our salvation.

00:29:13.600 We want to participate in salvation.

00:29:22.140 But friends, according to the scriptures, you have no participation in salvation.

00:29:30.740 It's not salvation if you're doing it.

00:29:35.040 It can't be.

00:29:38.920 God is the one who saves us.

00:29:41.520 God is the one who redeems us.

00:29:43.880 God is the one who has made a way for us to be saved.

00:29:47.020 God is the one who gave us his one and only son

00:29:49.440 that we might be saved through him.

00:29:55.180 We are slow to believe in the mercy of God

00:29:58.720 because we want to work for his mercy.

00:30:08.980 This has always been God's way.

00:30:10.860 sinners hide we see this in the garden sinners hide their sin but god not only calls

00:30:22.560 he declares forgiveness to his people after david confessed nathan spoke god's verdict

00:30:31.140 in second samuel 12 13 the lord also has put away your sin

00:30:37.260 In the priestly blessing, God places his name upon a cleansed people.

00:30:46.600 This is a benediction that we say all the time in the church.

00:30:52.540 The Lord bless you and keep you.

00:30:56.260 The Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.

00:31:00.240 The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.

00:31:08.000 Only forgiven people get peace.

00:31:14.940 This blessing is not a vague wish.

00:31:18.820 It's God's verdict.

00:31:22.100 Peace.

00:31:26.000 This leads us to our natural next question.

00:31:29.700 Who gets to speak this peace to God's people?

00:31:34.020 Who gets to tell you that you are at peace with God?

00:31:39.700 Scripture teaches that this belongs to the ministry of the word,

00:31:45.540 entrusted to those whom God has called to shepherd his flock.

00:31:49.660 As Paul told the Ephesian elders in Acts 20, verse 28,

00:31:55.220 Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers

00:32:03.220 to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.

00:32:12.740 Ordination happens when God calls a man.

00:32:17.240 The church recognizes that calling on a man.

00:32:21.320 Hands are laid on that man by lawfully ordained elders.

00:32:25.220 And then those men are set apart to preach the word of God and to administer the sacraments.

00:32:36.040 This includes publicly declaring to God's people with authority, you are forgiven.

00:32:47.500 So it is today.

00:32:49.100 when your pastor stands and declares an assurance of pardon over you

00:32:54.300 through God's word,

00:32:56.240 he's not inventing forgiveness.

00:32:59.620 He's delivering it to you.

00:33:03.740 He's publishing the verdict of heaven on your behalf.

00:33:07.720 The same verdict that God has spoken to his people

00:33:10.820 time and time again,

00:33:12.540 that you are forgiven.

00:33:15.800 And because the word comes from God himself,

00:33:19.100 and not from a mere man, you get to believe it.

00:33:25.620 It's more certain than your feelings that you're forgiven.

00:33:30.760 It's more solid than any of your doubts that you're forgiven.

00:33:40.100 This brings us to our final pattern in the liturgy,

00:33:44.040 our final movement that we see throughout the Scriptures.

00:33:47.620 After the word pierces us, confession is made and assurance of pardon is declared,

00:33:56.900 the Lord doesn't simply dismiss us.

00:34:00.980 That would be weird.

00:34:04.180 It'd be weird for him to say, you're a sinner.

00:34:09.480 We respond in confession.

00:34:11.840 He says you're forgiven.

00:34:13.740 Now go away.

00:34:15.040 No.

00:34:17.620 No, what God does in his word is that he draws people near to him.

00:34:25.960 The point of the sacrifice was to draw you in fellowship with God.

00:34:33.780 He draws us closer to him.

00:34:36.300 He confirms our cleansing, not by sending us away, but by seating us at his table.

00:34:42.580 in leviticus the order is unmistakable only after the atonement and peace offerings

00:34:52.520 is a holy meal eaten before the lord first cleansing then communion the blood removes

00:35:04.560 the guilt the verdict is spoken and then god spreads a table of fellowship for his people

00:35:10.740 this is not a new payment for sin

00:35:15.400 but a celebration of pardon

00:35:18.780 a meal of peace between the God

00:35:22.760 who just said that your sins have been put away

00:35:25.840 as far as the east is from the west

00:35:28.680 our world has no category for this

00:35:34.840 we live in a culture that remembers

00:35:38.920 sins endlessly.

00:35:42.960 We keep scores. 1.00

00:35:45.820 We weaponize failures

00:35:47.260 against one another.

00:35:50.740 Guilt

00:35:51.080 is exposed

00:35:52.100 but rarely cleansed.

00:35:56.240 Shame is

00:35:56.940 named but

00:35:59.060 never lifted.

00:36:02.220 But God forgives differently

00:36:04.740 as far as

00:36:07.180 the east is from the west, so far has he

00:36:11.140 removed our transgressions from us. Psalms

00:36:15.140 103 verse 12. His pardon

00:36:19.260 is not a half-hearted measure. He forgives

00:36:23.520 in order to draw you near.

00:36:27.560 And the holy meal declares it

00:36:30.720 that your fellowship with God is restored.

00:36:35.020 It's here at the Lord's table where we have that fellowship with God.

00:36:45.040 This is a fulfillment in Christ.

00:36:49.840 At the Last Supper, he lifted up the cup and he said,

00:36:55.160 This is my blood of the new covenant, which is shed for the many for the remission of their sins.

00:37:01.820 christ is the greater moses the greater aaron the once for all sacrifice the true peace offering of

00:37:13.900 the people of god his blood cleanses us his word pardons us his table welcomes us as friends

00:37:23.960 When we confess our sins and hear assurance, the next step is not to remain at a distance, but to draw near to God.

00:37:39.380 Forgiven people feast.

00:37:42.960 Forgiven people feast.

00:37:45.880 The table is not for the sinless, but for the cleansed. 0.79

00:37:49.860 Not for the perfect, but for the pardoned.

00:37:53.960 Think of the prodigal son.

00:37:59.240 He returned filthy, clutching his shame and rehearsing his apology.

00:38:06.320 But the father ran to him, embraced him, clothed him, killed the calf for a feast.

00:38:14.540 His sins were not only forgiven, they were followed by fellowship and feasting.

00:38:20.360 Forgiveness was not the end of that story

00:38:25.600 Communion was

00:38:27.660 That's God's pattern

00:38:31.700 To stop with pardon but never come to the meal

00:38:36.380 Would be like washing your hands but never eating

00:38:39.180 Strange

00:38:41.680 The gospel is richer than this

00:38:46.540 cleansing leads to communion

00:38:50.780 he does not leave us at the threshold

00:38:54.940 he ushers us in to his table

00:38:57.800 the supper is not a polite handshake

00:39:01.440 after pardon

00:39:02.480 it's a feast of restored fellowship

00:39:06.600 this is why it's so precious to us

00:39:11.820 every lord's day

00:39:12.780 Every week after confessing our sins and hearing God's verdict, God does not dismiss us, he invites us.

00:39:23.880 Come, eat, come, drink. My fellowship is restored. My peace is yours.

00:39:34.020 Bread is broken, the cup is poured, and God's living way of saying,

00:39:42.040 I have taken away your sins, now sit and eat with me, is before us.

00:39:51.980 This is the rhythm of the gospel.

00:39:56.000 Forgiveness is not the end.

00:39:58.440 It's the doorway to fellowship.

00:40:00.320 The table is not the reward for the strong, but the feast for the weary.

00:40:07.740 Not for the sinless, but for the cleansed.

00:40:11.180 Not for the perfect, but for the pardoned.

00:40:14.900 Week by week, the Lord of glory stoops to serve his people of meal of peace.

00:40:21.160 So when you come to the supper, don't come as a stranger or as a beggar.

00:40:27.540 come as a son

00:40:31.060 come as a daughter

00:40:35.040 as one clothed in Jesus Christ

00:40:39.180 come as one whose guilt has been lifted

00:40:42.460 and whose shame has been carried away

00:40:44.840 make sure you bring your children with you

00:40:48.700 as long as they have been baptized

00:40:50.880 for the table is not only for you

00:40:54.280 but for your household in Jesus Christ

00:40:56.740 Just as Israel's families ate at the covenant meal together,

00:41:03.140 so now the church gathers as one family at Christ's covenant meal.

00:41:11.620 Come not as isolated individuals, but come as one family of God,

00:41:20.740 welcomed by the feast of his grace.

00:41:24.060 Come as a guest of the king, because he himself has said to you,

00:41:32.280 you are forgiven, my peace is yours, now sit and eat with me.

00:41:41.120 So where does this leave us? I'm wrapping it up here.

00:41:46.320 Where does this leave us?

00:41:47.740 it leaves us with a call to walk the covenant road that God has laid down.

00:41:55.960 Not as ritual for ritual's sake,

00:41:59.220 but as God's gracious way of keeping his people near to him.

00:42:03.800 And so there's four applications for you.

00:42:06.960 I would encourage you to write these down.

00:42:09.780 Four applications.

00:42:10.920 Number one, confess your sins specifically.

00:42:20.680 Confess your sins specifically.

00:42:25.780 Leviticus says in Leviticus 5.5,

00:42:29.780 He shall confess that he has sinned in that thing.

00:42:36.180 Your sin has to be specifically named.

00:42:39.080 not that you have to name every single sin that you've ever done because many of us forget that

00:42:45.480 we're sinners we forget sometimes the sins specifically but as often as you can you ought

00:42:53.100 to make it a practice to confess your sins specifically because it reminds you that god's

00:42:59.420 grace is still on you you can visibly see as the holy spirit sanctifies you away from that sin

00:43:08.260 so that someday you get to praise God

00:43:11.340 that you're no longer confessing the same sin.

00:43:15.180 It's a wonderful thing when we get to do that.

00:43:18.860 So confess your sin specifically.

00:43:22.620 Number two, hear God's verdict.

00:43:27.900 Hear God's verdict.

00:43:30.960 When the minister declares pardon from Scripture,

00:43:34.400 don't hear it as wishful thinking.

00:43:36.400 Hear it as God's divine voice to you.

00:43:43.900 It's God's word and not your feelings that has the final say in your life.

00:43:50.700 The scriptures promise to God's people that when you confess your sins, you are forgiven.

00:43:56.400 And it is sinful for you to not believe that.

00:44:00.880 Believe that you are forgiven and live as a forgiven people.

00:44:06.400 That's number two.

00:44:08.660 Number three, come to the table of the Lord.

00:44:14.140 Come to the table of the Lord.

00:44:16.160 The supper is not another sacrifice,

00:44:18.900 but it's the place where we get to have fellowship with God.

00:44:24.340 This is why confession and assurance of pardon comes before the table.

00:44:29.020 The table is not for the sinless, but for the cleansed.

00:44:33.920 Don't hold yourself back from the fellowship that is had at this table.

00:44:39.380 That would be like the Israelites saying,

00:44:41.800 I'm not going to eat the Passover meal this year.

00:44:45.580 They would never do that. 0.58

00:44:48.680 Don't hold back from this table.

00:44:53.220 Confess your sins quickly.

00:44:55.600 Receive the assurance of pardon.

00:44:57.020 And then come and eat joyfully with your whole family.

00:45:03.160 Lastly, number four, do not neglect the Lord's day.

00:45:11.100 Do not neglect the Lord's day.

00:45:15.340 If God really speaks, if his pardon is truly declared,

00:45:21.400 and Christ himself feeds us at his table,

00:45:24.800 then the Lord's day is not optional.

00:45:28.340 It's vital.

00:45:29.400 unless you're sick or traveling somewhere else

00:45:34.080 which if you're traveling I would encourage you

00:45:37.340 still go to church

00:45:38.600 it's not an excuse to miss church

00:45:41.060 I wasn't here for the past two Sundays

00:45:44.060 and I was in church every Sunday

00:45:45.960 do not miss church 0.99

00:45:50.240 your soul will grow inept over time

00:45:54.220 the scriptures command us in Hebrews 10.25

00:45:58.040 to not forsake the gathering of the brethren.

00:46:03.780 Our souls need to be fed each and every Lord's Day.

00:46:07.920 You need to confess your sins with the body of believers.

00:46:11.380 You need to hear the assurance of pardon.

00:46:13.960 You need to hear the word preached.

00:46:16.280 You need to feed at God's table.

00:46:19.860 Your soul needs it.

00:46:21.900 don't allow distractions to take you away from this holy day

00:46:28.380 if family is in town bring them to church

00:46:32.340 don't make an excuse to not go to church because family's in town

00:46:36.840 it's not an excuse what you're telling to your family when they come into town

00:46:42.740 and you skip church is that they're more important than the lord's day

00:46:48.980 this is not true

00:46:52.240 they need to know

00:46:55.240 that you are serious

00:46:57.460 about being fed

00:46:59.660 and what better place to lead them

00:47:02.320 than Sunday morning worship

00:47:04.600 church raise your theology

00:47:09.760 of the Lord's day

00:47:10.900 raise the significance

00:47:13.580 that you have of the Lord's day

00:47:15.820 do not forget

00:47:17.840 that you are a forgiven child of the king.

00:47:22.280 That you have fellowship with God.

00:47:26.420 Week by week, God spreads an acre of diamonds before you.

00:47:34.000 His word, his pardon, his peace, his table.

00:47:38.820 They're all diamonds.

00:47:41.400 Don't wander off searching treasure somewhere else.

00:47:44.100 The riches are here, in Christ, given to you in worship.

00:47:52.640 Open your eyes, receive them, and rejoice.

00:47:58.500 Amen?

00:48:00.300 Join me, if you would, in praying for these holy ends in our lives.

00:48:04.800 Let's pray.

00:48:08.400 Heavenly Father,

00:48:09.520 Lord, we thank you this morning.

00:48:14.100 for the riches of your grace in the liturgy on Sunday.

00:48:22.020 Lord, we thank you for the blessing of getting to gather as one body,

00:48:29.180 of being able to receive your forgiveness and be shown your grace to us

00:48:37.780 and how much you do truly love us in Christ.

00:48:44.860 God, I pray that you would raise our theology of liturgy.

00:48:50.460 That we would be people who love your worship.

00:48:54.580 Who love to be in your presence each and every Lord's Day.

00:48:59.800 Who love to join with the heavenly host in your worship.

00:49:05.580 Who love to praise the King of glory that saved our souls from death.

00:49:11.280 god help us to not treat this day or any of the things that we do on this day

00:49:20.600 as common as casual

00:49:24.560 help us to recognize them for what they are

00:49:29.320 which are holy reminders of your grace to us

00:49:34.200 in jesus name amen amen

00:49:41.280 Thank you.

Dale Partridge - August 26, 2025

Peace After Pardon： Confession and Communion in Christ

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