Tag: Communion

Sunday Scripture

Happy Resurrection Sunday my friends !

This is Part 11 of my continuing sermon leading-up to this glorious day. I started on Sunday January 31ST 2021 at the start of Chapter 18 of the Gospel of John, and now here we are.

This morning after our Pastor’s sermon I’ll be leading my local church family in Communion. It’ll tell the story of the continuation of the ministry of Jesus. It did not end at the grave.

Here’s a transcript of my Communion for this morning. It includes my own notes and commentary for presentation. Additionally I’ll be closing our Sunday morning service immediately following Communion, and I’ve included that part of the transcript as well:

At this time let’s transition into our observance and celebration of Communion.

HE – IS – RISEN ! HE IS RISEN – INDEED !

This morning we join our brothers and sisters in Christ – God’s beautiful creations here at Living Waters – and all throughout Homestead and South Florida – and all across this great nation – and all around the world – as we observe and celebrate the glorious resurrection of Jesus Christ – our Lord and Savior.

We join our brothers and sisters of God’s global church body on this Easter Sunday. But we know that every waking moment of each new day is a renewed celebration of Christ conquering the grave, and rising from the dead, and giving us life. HE IS RISEN ! HE IS RISEN – INDEED ! And because He is risen – we have risen from where we once had been.

As the Bible says in John’s Gospel:

Early on (that) Sunday morning – while it was still dark – (before the sun rose) – Mary Magdalene came to the tomb (to help complete the burial of Jesus), and (she) found that the (rolling) stone had been rolled away from the entrance. She ran and (she) found Simon Peter – and the other disciple – the one whom Jesus loved – (that was probably John – the author of this Gospel). (Mary) said – “They have taken the Lord’s body out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put Him !” (20:1-2)

(Mary thought that someone had robbed the tomb and stolen the body.)

Peter and the other disciple (John) started out for the tomb. They were both running, but the other disciple (John) outran Peter and reached the tomb first. (John) stooped, and (he) looked in, and (he) saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he didn’t go in. (And) then Simon Peter arrived, and (he) went inside. He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there – while the cloth that had covered Jesus’ head was (neatly) folded up and lying apart from the other wrappings. Then the disciple who had reached the tomb first (John) also went in, and he saw and (he) believed – for until then they still hadn’t understood the Scriptures – (that would be the Old Testament Scriptures) – that said Jesus must rise from the dead. Then they went home. (20:3-10)

Peter and John saw the linen wrappings and the facial cloth lying there, and they knew that this was not the work of common grave robbers, as those garments would’ve been stolen too. No. This was the work of God, and Christ – the Son of God – was alive !

See Jesus keeps His promises – then and now. He does what He says He is going to do. He is who He says He is. He is risen. He is risen – indeed. He is alive. He sits on the throne of Heaven. He is the King of Kings. He is the Lord of Lords. He gives us life. He breathes life onto our dry bones. Breath of God – breathe on us ! He makes all things new. He gives us hope. He gives us purpose. He makes us vessels of vibrant living waters.

And so on this Resurrection Sunday – that the LORD has made – let’s observe – let’s rejoice – let’s celebrate – this believer’s Communion – this agreement – of Creator, Christ, and Spirit as One God. It’s open for everyone who hears me – everyone who believes that Christ suffered when He died for all of our sins – once – for all time. He that knew no sin suffered in the place of those that knew no righteousness. We don’t need to pay the price for our sins that we’ve repented for – now and forever, for it is finished. It is paid in full.

If you believe in your heart that the finished work of Christ on the cross and His resurrection from the dead results in your redemption forever – then I invite you to accept this bread and this juice. I invite you to come forth at this time, and take the elements back to your seat. Remain standing (if you can). If you would rather sit down – then you can do that too. We’ll accept these elements together as a church family.

[Distribute elements.]

(These elements are individually-packaged for your health and safety. The juice is on top. The bread is on the bottom. Simply hold your hand underneath it, and peel off the bottom of it to release the bread into your open hand.)

(You may slip-off your face masks at this time.)

And as the Bible says in First Corinthians:

For this is what the Lord Himself said, and I pass it on to you just as I received it. On the night when He was betrayed the Lord Jesus took some bread, and (He) gave thanks to God for it. Then He broke it in pieces and said, “This is My body – which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of Me.” (11:23-24)

[Eat the bread.]

In the same way He took the cup of wine after supper saying, “This cup is the new covenant between God and His people – an agreement confirmed with My blood. Do this in remembrance of Me as often as you drink it.” (11:25)

[Drink the juice.]

For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup you are announcing the Lord’s death – until He comes again. (11:26)

Let us bow our heads. Let us pray. Thank You Jesus for that ultimate sacrifice on the cross. Thank You God for choosing us – and blessing us here at Living Waters with Your grace and Your mercy. Thank You Lord for Your awesome presence in our lives – and Your intentional purpose for our lives. May all of Your blessings and miracles constantly strengthen our faith in You, increase our love towards others, and unify our hearts and our souls. We honor You Lord. We worship You Lord. We love You Lord. And together we say in agreement – AMEN.

If you’re standing then you may be seated.

From cradle to grave – we praise and worship the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. And thankfully it didn’t end at the grave. That Friday and that Saturday were not good days for God’s believers and followers. Meanwhile – the forces of evil – the demons – they were celebrating victory on Friday and Saturday.

But then there was Sunday. It started with the discovery of the empty tomb. Our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ conquered the grave. He conquered death. He rose again. He is still alive. He still believes in you. He loves you – more than you could ever imagine. And He is coming back again. I believe. We believe.

Last Easter we were in seclusion – away from each other – in our own homes. This Easter we are here – where we belong – with our closest brothers and sisters of God’s church family.

Thank You for coming here today – to celebrate the most important event – ever recorded – in the history of civilization.

Don’t let this celebration end here and now. Take this celebration out there – in everything you do – and everywhere you go.

And I’ll send you out there with this Benediction from Numbers – Chapter 6 (24-26):

May the Lord bless you and protect you.
May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord show you His favor and give you His peace.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit – and my church family says – AMEN.

Go forth. Go in peace. We hope to see you here next Sunday – at 11 !

Missed the first 10 parts of this sermon ? Check them out – PART 1 / PART 2 / PART 3 / PART 4 / PART 5 / PART 6 / PART 7 / PART 8 / PART 9 / PART 10

Tags Bible, Blog, Christ, Christian, Church, Communion, Easter, God, Jesus, Minister, Ministry, Resurrection, Scripture, Sermon

Bible Blogging Christian Church God Ministry Scripture

Sunday Scripture

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date September 13, 2020

Greetings my extended church body – my brothers and sisters in Christ worldwide. It’s Sunday September 13TH 2020, and this is the day that our LORD has made. Let us rejoice. Let us be glad in it. Let us celebrate this day and each new day that God grants us on His fantastic journey for us.

Last Sunday morning when I arrived at my church sanctuary about 45 minutes prior to the start of the service I saw this to my surprise:

That’s our Communion table – front-and-center. I wasn’t expecting it there. You see for the past 4 years I’ve been in charge of Communion. I schedule it (usually on the first Sunday of every month). I study for it. I pray about it. I prepare the elements. I place the table. I lead my church body in Holy Communion. I did that every month from August 2016 to March 2020, and then COVID-19 hit.

We resumed regular weekly in-person services on Sunday May 31ST, but Communion was not part of the service due to COVID concerns. In June, July, and August I told my church body that eventually we would return to observing and celebrating Communion at the start of every month – once we figure out how to do it safely.

Well our Lead Pastor figured out a way to do it safely. He actually setup that Communion table, and it looked beautiful too. Once I saw that I had less than 45 minutes to study for it and pray about it. A nicety with modern technology is the fact that I had almost my entire history of Communions on a Cloud – accessible via my iPhone. I went to work to find one that was perfect for the day. Once I found it I updated it for the day. I prayed about it. I enhanced it further. I prayed about it some more. I essentially did what usually takes me much of Saturday to do at my traditional computer at home – in less than 45 minutes on my iPhone.

Our Lead Pastor delivered his message titled, “What Is The Day Of The LORD ?”, and then he called me up to lead Communion. It went rather smoothly, and it actually flowed perfectly as a nice continuation of his sermon. (That was a “God-wink” moment there.)

My Communion was based on 1 John 5:1-6:

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has become a child of God. And everyone who loves the Father loves His children too. We know we love God’s children – if we love God and obey His commandments. Loving God means keeping His commandments, and His commandments are not burdensome. For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith. And who can win this battle against the world ? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God. And Jesus Christ was revealed as God’s Son by His baptism in water, and by shedding His blood on the cross. And the Spirit – who is truth – confirms it with His testimony.

EPILOGUE: You know I’m not big into surprises. I prefer the status quo. I prefer the way that it’s always been done. But you know – I’ve come to expect God’s surprises over the past 14 years, and I love them. Our God didn’t create this fantastic journey for us to live a routine – mundane – monotonous life. He created this journey for adventure and excitement. He died for us so that we can live – live the life that He intended us to live when He created us – a life with purpose – a life with potential to change the world. There are surprises with each new curve along the journey. Grab them, and make the most of them !

Tags Bible, Blog, Christian, Church, Communion, God, Scripture

Bible Christian Church Driving God Ministry Scripture Travel

Sunday Scripture

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date March 8, 2020

I have returned from out-of-town. My 628.8-mile road-trip came to a close yesterday (Saturday) morning. I’ll share details of my combined business and leisure trip today, tomorrow, and Thursday here on my blog. This is the Spring Season Premiere here on #CountUp !

Today was my 5TH Anniversary with my current church body. After 8 years and a month with my previous (much larger) church body I left for a much smaller church body a mile down the street – knowing only one person at the new place. I began a season of much-needed rest at the new place. 17 months later I was asked to take over and lead our monthly Communion. Today I led our 45TH Communion together. Here’s how it went:

Let us now transition into our monthly observance and celebration of Communion. It’s an observance. It’s an opportunity – that allows us to slow down, and reflect, and honor, and remember what our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ did for us on that cross on that day. It’s a continuation of this celebration that we enjoy together as a church body every Sunday morning when we bring the church from out there to in here. For we know that the church is not this physical building. The church is us.

This past week I spent 4 days – Monday to Thursday – up in Orlando – celebrating Christ – with 5,000+ Pastors, Preachers, Ministers, and other Church Leaders. We were in Communion with one another. We were a Community of fellow believers in one place at one time discussing the many ways forward to go forth and advance the Kingdom of God in this world. We met together. We prayed together. We sang together. We learned together. We listened together. We got closer to God together. And then – we were sent out into the world together.

The overall theme of this conference was the entirety of the Gospel According To John – Chapter 17. In Christ’s final prayer to the Father – before His suffering and death – He said this in Verses 20 and 21:

I am praying – not only for these disciples – but also for all who will ever believe in Me through their message. I pray that they will all be one – just as You and I are One – as You are in Me – Father – and I am in You. And may they be in Us – so that the world will believe You sent Me.

See the Son – was – and is – praying for all of those of the world who do not yet believe in Him. He wanted believers from anywhere and everywhere to become one flock with one shepherd.

2,000 years later we believe that when we are one with one another – it’s an extension of the union that we have with Christ Himself. It’s a union that’s modeled on the Oneness of the Father and the Son. And through the power of the Holy Spirit we are intimate with the Father and the Son. We are transformed by this renewing.

This is our believer’s Communion. We believe that we have one living and true God – in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. 3 Persons – 1 God. Each is God individually; yet, they are one God together. One God who is almighty. One God who never changes with the times. One God who is eternal.

And so this believer’s Communion is open for everyone who hears me – everyone who believes that we are better – together. We must be in unity – as a community, so that when we go out there – the world will see the love of Christ in each of us.

(I’ve asked Larry and Shirley to serve us these elements today, so as they make their way up here to retrieve the elements) I invite you to join me in honoring our 3-in-1 God – who reigns – now and forever.

At this time come forth to accept this bread and this juice. Take them back to your seat – and remain standing (if you can). After everyone is back at their seats – we’ll accept these elements together as a church body. Come forth.

Communion

Let us take this bread, and know that it represents the sacred body of Christ that was given up for us on that cross. We take this bread in remembrance of Him.

Let us take this juice, and know that it represents the precious blood of Christ that was shed for us on that cross. We take this juice in honor of Him.

Let us bow our heads. Let us pray:

Thank You God for this Glorious moment – in this place – at this time. Thank You Lord for being the loving God that You are – Creator, Christ, and Spirit as One.

Thank You Lord for Your awesome presence in our lives – and Your intentional purpose for our lives. May all of Your blessings and miracles constantly strengthen our faith in You, increase our love towards others, and unify our hearts and our souls. We honor You Lord. We praise You Lord. We worship You Lord. We celebrate You Lord. We love You Lord – on this day – and with each new day. And we confirm this by saying – AMEN.

(Please be seated.)

As the Bible says in red letters – Son to Father:

I have given them the glory You gave Me, so they may be one as We are One. I am in them, and You are in Me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that You sent Me, and that You love them as much as You love Me.
(John 17:22-23)

Tags Communion

Bible Christian Church God Ministry Scripture

Sunday Scripture

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date February 2, 2020

Today was Communion Sunday with my Living Waters church family. Here’s how God led me:

It is the 1ST Sunday of a brand new month – February – and it’s our time here at Living Waters to observe and celebrate Communion. It’s an observance. It’s an opportunity – that allows us to slow down, and reflect, and honor, and remember what our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ did for us on that cross on that day. It’s also the continuation of this celebration that we enjoy corporately as a church body every Sunday morning when we bring the church from out there to in here.

Christ suffered for us. Never did He sin. Never did He deceive anyone. Never did He retaliate against anyone. Never did He seek revenge against anyone. None of us can claim that, but Christ can. Christ was innocent. We are guilty.

See He had no sins of His own, so He carried all of our sins – past, present, and future – to the cross. He died a horrible death to pay the penalty for our sins forever. He did that for us. That allows us to be dead to sin. That allows us to live for what is right. We didn’t deserve it, but by God’s Grace – we are saved. By His wounds – we are healed. By His suffering – we are free.

So let’s remember – what Christ did for us – and what He continues to do for us.

This is our believer’s Communion. We believe that we have one living and true God – in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. 3 Persons – 1 God. Each is God individually; yet, they are one God together. One God – who is almighty. One God – who never changes. One God – who is eternal.

And so this believer’s Communion is open for everyone who hears me – everyone who believes this. If you believe that we are now under the eternal protection of our shepherd – then I invite you to accept this bread and this juice.

I’ve asked Larry and Shirley to serve us these elements today, so as they make their way up here to retrieve the elements I invite you to join me in honoring our 3-in-1 God – who reigns – now and forever.

[Praise & Worship Pastor leads us in “We Believe” from Newsboys.]

Communion

Let us take this bread, and know that it represents the sacred body of Christ that was given up for us on that cross. We take this bread in remembrance of Him.

Let us take this juice, and know that it represents the precious blood of Christ that was shed for us on that cross. We take this juice in honor of Him.

Let us bow our heads. Let us pray:

Thank You God for this Glorious moment – in this place – at this time. Thank You Lord for being the unchangeable and unstoppable God that You are – Creator, Christ, and Spirit as One.

Thank You Lord for Your awesome presence in our lives – and Your intentional purpose for our lives. May all of Your beautiful blessings and marvelous miracles constantly strengthen our faith in You, increase our love towards others, and unify our hearts and our souls. We honor You Lord. We praise You Lord. We worship You Lord. We celebrate You Lord. We love You Lord – on this day – and with each new day. And we confirm this by saying – AMEN.

(You may be seated.)

As the Bible says in the Gospel According To John (6:57), and this is in red letters, so Christ said it Himself:

I live because of the living Father who sent Me. In the same way – anyone who feeds on Me will live because of Me.

Receiving the body and blood of Christ during Communion means that we are embracing the life-giving sacrifice of Jesus.