Easter Message for Sardis From Pastor Fortunato Santos
I am sending you messages for Good Friday, Sunday and Tuesday Bible Study.
On Good Friday at 3pm for those are who available we will be having communion in our own houses but being aware that we are not alone. We are part of a worldwide community of believers who will be together in spirit remembering the Lord till He comes.
Please, if you are able on Good Friday at 3pm to celebrate alone, or if there are other believers in your household celebrate with them the Last Supper. You will need bread, wine (Ribena or water). At 3pm stand for 1 minute silence in respect for what the Lord Jesus has done for us. Please have communion after you have read the message below.
Pray and sing a song
Please read Luke 22: 44 -56
It took them 33 and ½ years for the authorities to put their hands on Him. We know through the scriptures that when Jesus was born, King Herod tried to kill Him (Matthew 2:13-18). More than once people tried to kill Jesus (Luke 4:28-30;John 11:53). Even though it took them 33 ½ years to lay their hands on Him, they were always harassing Him. Jesus was truly bullied by many people in those days. His enemies tried to embarrass Him, tried to cause Him to say or do something against the law of God, they tried hard to incriminate Him, but they could not because He was an innocent man. It took them a long time, but a day came when Jesus was caught by those who hated Him.
In the mind of the disciples it was just another Passover meal and it was a time when they reminisced about the escape of the Hebrew children from Egypt. It was a very meaningful day when the whole Jewish nation would stop and celebrate the Passover. However this Passover was a different one from all the other Passover celebrations which took place. They were a representation of the True Passover. The True Passover would be when God Himself would be the Lamb to be sacrificed for us. In Genesis 22:7,8 we read about Isaac asking Abraham a question ‘Father, the fire and the wood are here but where is lamb for the burnt offering?’ Abraham gave an answer ‘God Himself will provide a lamb for the burnt offering’. We know that God did provide a lamb and Isaac’s life was spared. The question asked by Isaac ‘where is the lamb?’, was also answered by John the Baptist. When John the Baptist saw Jesus he said ‘Behold the Lamb of God which takes away the sin of the world’ (John 1:29). Going back to the last Passover meal Jesus had with the disciples, He was eager to eat it with them (Luke 22:15). When Jesus entered the room and saw everything was prepared for them to ‘enjoy the feast’, because for the Jews it was a festive occasion – Jesus saw the lamb on the table He knew what it represented, it represented Him, who would be the very sacrifice that would be taking place just in matter of hours. 33 and ½ years and the time had come for the authorities to lay their hands on Him because He could not escape any longer. No, it was for this very hour Jesus had come into the world. Jesus willingly gave Himself into the hands of those who were going to crucify Him. Isaac had a lamb which took his place, but Jesus was the very Lamb that was going to take our place. He prayed and cried out to God to help Him “Father if you are willing take this cup from Me” (Luke 22:42). God had the power to do so, God had the power to take that cup from Jesus, however, God decided not to. It broke God’s heart when His only Son cried out and pleaded with Him to pass that cup from Him. God knew it was the only way mankind could be brought back to Himself. God’s commitment to redeem mankind was stronger than His desire to spare His Son. God knew this was the only way we could find forgiveness and reconciliation with Him. The whole of the universe felt the pain of what was taking place. The Lord did not share The Last Passover only with His disciples, spiritually speaking He shared it with all of us. When we take Communion together we remember what He has done for us.
Calvary was not an accident in Jesus’ history. Calvary was planned by God. God in His infinite compassion provided a Lamb that was slain for us to take away our sin. Good Friday is a day of great paradox. A great paradox because an innocent man – Jesus – was found guilty so that the guilty ones could go free – us. It was a day of great sadness but also of great joy. Sadness because Jesus died, but joy because through His death we obtain eternal life. It was a day of what seemed to be a great defeat when the Son of God was sacrificed, bur also great joy, because through His sacrifice we find forgiveness and reconciliation with God.
It was done for us, it was done for me.
God bless you.
At this moment if you wish sing a song to the Lord – I would suggest ‘When I survey the wondrous cross.
Now as we take communion together first we give God thanks for giving us Jesus.
If you have done anything you know that has displeased the Lord confess it now.
Open your bible and 1 Corinthians 11:23 – 26
Break the bread which represents the broken body of Jesus, pray and eat the bread
Take wine which represents the blood of Jesus, pray and drink the cup.
Tuesday Bible Study
The Lord’s Supper – 14/04/20
Pray and ask the Lord to speak into your heart.
We have just celebrated Good Friday. Good Friday gives a very clear teaching of the Last Supper and in our Bible Study today we are going to look at Paul’s teaching on the Lord’s Supper.
Sing to worship Him.
Read 1 Corinthians 11: 17-33
The city of Corinth was, and is located in the south of Greece. Paul first visited it during his second missionary journey. Corinth was a port city and because of that it was influenced by many different parts of the world. It was a very idolatrous town and also promiscuous . This is the sort of place where Paul took the gospel and he succeeded to plant a church which developed well. However, to put all of these people together proved to be a big challenge and they had a lot to learn in how to behave as children of God. They had a heart for God but it was necessary for them to learn to do things in God’s ways. Paul was afraid their meeting was causing more harm than good (in verse 17). This is a challenge to us as believers today – our gathering should do more good than harm. We are part of the meeting and not just spectators. Paul had a lot to teach the people in Corinth of how to behave as Christians. In this passage we just read he was teaching them about ‘The Lord’s Supper’. These people came from a pagan background and found salvation in Christ but they did not have a Christian culture to support their new faith and they were doing things that weren’t right and Paul was teaching them how to live in newness of life.
It was part of the pagan culture of those days when people were meeting together in the pagan temples to eat and drink. The animals that were sacrificed to the pagan gods would be slaughtered and cooked and the meat given to the people to eat. The person who paid for the sacrifice ‘the patron’ he, and his family and friends would be the first ones to eat and also to drink. Then the rest of the food would be distributed to others and some people who were hungry would be fighting over the food and drink. Those people used to have proper food parties in the pagan temples and some people would go there only to eat and drink. Of course, when some of these people were converted to Christianity inadvertently they brought with them their pagan culture which would not resemble at all the Jewish Passover meal. Paul took the opportunity to teach them about the ‘new faith they had embraced’. In our own walk with God we can be discouraged when we see people doing things that are not quite right. Do not lose heart but be willing to teach them the ways of God, it is part of discipling them about God.
To avoid problems of gluttony and drunkenness, Paul taught the Corinthians to eat and drink at home so that when they would have the Lord’s Supper together they would concentrate upon Jesus sacrifice. Paul never met with the Lord, he was not part of those who were present in the Last Supper, but he learned to ‘remember the Lord till He comes’. The broken bread symbolizes the broken body of Jesus. All the physical and emotional torture He went through in order to save us. The punishment that was upon Him, was our punishment. He did not do anything that deserved such cruel punishment. The wine is a symbol of Jesus blood which was shed for us. Blood in the Bible represents life. The Lord Jesus shed His blood ‘life’ to redeem us from our sins. He paid the price.
Paul also calls to our attention for us not to participate of the Lord’s table with sin in our hearts. That’s why it is important for people to put their lives right with God and in some instances with others before they take communion. If we do it with impure hearts we are going to be bringing judgement upon ourselves. It is very unwise and it shows no fear of God when we take communion with sin in our lives. Paul said that it could even bring death to those who dare to do so (in verse 30).
One of the things we should refrain from doing is looking around and thinking ‘this or that person should not be taking communion, I know what they have been up to’. Paul came across this problem in his days and that’s why he says in verses 28 to 31 ‘ let a man examine himself and judge himself’. I am not saying that we approve of people’s wrong doing, what I am saying is, when taking communion concentrate on what the Lord has done for you when he died on Calvary and do not be distracted from it. During the Last Supper the Lord served even Judas Iscariot the one who betrayed Him. Communion is for us to partake in Remembrance of Him.
Prayer Points;
Joanne Morgan, and Joanna Davies (Mair’s daughter) as they work in Tonna Hospital.
People who are unwell
John Jervis, Kathy, Bethany, Terry Brock, June Harris, John Jervis, Alun Jones (Maureen’s brother)
Keep praying for those who are in the frontline (doctors, nurses, shop keepers, carers etc)
Pray for vaccination and medicine to combat Coronavirus to be found
Pray for the leadership in our country. Pray for the Prime Minister Boris Johnson