Well, as the Lord would have it, I'm continuing on in Exodus chapter 24, verses 1 through 8, and this being Palm Sunday, I think we see some good correlation and agreement here with our text in this day as well. Follow along as I read Exodus chapter 24, verses 1 through 8. Now he said to Moses, come up to the Lord, you and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and 70 of the elders of Israel. Worship from afar, and Moses alone shall come near the Lord, but they shall not come near, nor shall the people go up with him. So Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord and all the judgments. And all the people answered with one voice and said, all the words which the Lord has said we will do. And Moses wrote all the words of the Lord and rose early in the morning and built an altar at the foot of the mountains and 12 pillars according to the 12 tribes of Israel. Then he sent young men of the children of Israel who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to the Lord. And Moses took half the blood and put it in basins and the half the blood he sprinkled on the altar. Then he took the book of the covenant and read in the hearing of the people, and they said, All that the Lord has said we will do, and be obedient. And Moses took the blood and sprinkled it on the people and said, This is the blood of the covenant which the Lord has made with you according to all these words. The grass withers and the flower falls away, but the word of God endures forever. May God bless the reading and proclamation of his holy and enduring word. You know, that last verse of verse eight, today's text of Moses taking the blood of the sacrifice and proclaiming it to the children of Israel. This is the blood of the covenant. It takes our minds to the very words of our Lord that we often read at the time of the Lord's table in Matthew chapter 26. There we read in verse 27 of Matthew 26, that he took a cup and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them saying, drink from it all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. Now, do you remember the first time you really started to give consideration to those words of the Lord and what they meant? Now, if you're like me, I'm sure it has grown with you as more understanding has come in and also appreciation for those words, especially as we partake of the Lord's table. And I'm sure for many of us, when we think of those words, it's always in the context of the Lord's own sacrifice and death and his redemptive work on the cross on our behalf. And that indeed is no doubt a proper context to have. But for others, especially those of the first century, those disciples of Christ who he spoke these words to, there was also historical context beyond just the days of the Lord and the connection all the way back to the time of Moses and what we read today in chapter 24 of Exodus. Now the disciples were familiar with the Old Testament narratives of God dealing with his people Israel and the various covenants he made with them as a nation. And chief among them was the covenant we read in today's texts, we also know it as the Mosaic Covenant. Now put yourself in the shoes of those disciples on whom the Lord first spoke these words to. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the givenness of sins. When the Lord said this to these disciples, they already had context in which those words had a place to fit. Their minds would think of their forefather Moses and the picture of Moses sprinkling the people with the blood of the sacrifice and proclaiming, this is the word of the covenant which the Lord has made with you according to these words. Now we have both the joy and the privilege of reading and studying all of God's dealings with his people, both in the Old Testament and in the New Testament church. Now the earlier covenants built one upon another until they reached that which they pointed to, the New Covenant that was inaugurated by the Lord Jesus Christ. Now our brother Mike read from Hebrews 9, 13 and 14. Let me read those verses yet again. For if the blood of bulls and goats and ashes of a heifer sprinkling the unclean sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal spirit offered himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God. Now the covenant made with Moses and the children of Israel is that which pointed to the greater covenant. And the Old Testaments look forward to that which Jeremiah proclaimed in Jeremiah chapter 31, verses 33 and 34. Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, with the house of Judah, not according to the covenant I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand and led them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the Lord. But this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord. I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts, and I will be their God and they shall be my people. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord, for they all shall know me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more." Such a promise of the New Covenant that all these other covenants pointed to. And even though now we are in the New Covenant, We have much to glean from the types and shadows and the anti-types that were, excuse me, what we see portrayed in the covenants gone before. And we also see a pattern of worship within these covenants as well. And they help define how we worship today. Now the truth is, as we study how God relates to his creation, and more specifically to his people, we ought to have the only true, genuine response of getting a clearer picture of who we are, and even more importantly, getting a clearer picture of who God is. And that response is twofold. We are humbled, we are humbled before him, and have a greater sense of awe that causes us to worship. In all our study, in all our study, in meditation, should in some way cause those two things in us. A clear understanding of who we are, but more chiefly of who God is. And that ought to create a sense of humility and worship. And if it doesn't, if all our studying of scripture and that, if it doesn't create those two things at the end of the day, then something is amiss in our Christianity. Now, dear ones, we will have seasons of going through valleys and what seems like heavy clouds over us, no doubt. Times of spiritual dryness and a great time of dryness, of nourishment, of soul. There are days when we may feel like our prayers hardly get outside of our lips. You ever have that sense that your prayers weren't hardly getting past your mouth and definitely not any further than the ceiling that's above us? But those are seasons, those are seasons. They're not that which defines us as part of being a new creation in Christ. Like a line graph that shows a line ascending as it progresses. Though there may be dips here and there, overall we can look back and we can say, though I don't love him as I ought, I love him more than I did. And as we look and meditate upon God's word and we learn more and more of his greatness, his majesty, his holiness and his transcendence, but also at the same time, we wanna consider his eminence and his love and his mercy, all the attributes, all the perfections of God, making God bigger in ourselves, smaller in our thinking. He must increase, we must decrease. Now if you recall the children of Israel were not set free from their oppression and bondage in Egypt for the sole purpose of putting an end to their suffering. Now that was indeed one reason, we read in Exodus chapter 3 verse 9, now therefore behold the cry of the children of Israel has come to me and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppressed them. So to deliver them from their suffering was one reason indeed, but it wasn't the main reason. The main reason was worship. God told Pharaoh through Moses in Exodus 8.1, thus says the Lord, let my people go that they may serve me or some translations have that they may worship me. Now, We have a tendency, especially in the affluent West here, to put forth a therapeutic Christianity. Believe in Christ is to make life better, better health, better marriage, better children, and so on. Now, it might not be an explicit message that you hear often, but it could be communicated implicitly. And there is some truth to that, isn't there? There's an element of truth to it, isn't it? A man comes to Christ and he puts away illicit things out of his life, and he will experience a better life. He's not wasting his money on drink or gambling. He's not angry because he no longer carries the guilt that comes along with such things. And yes, that man will be a better son and be a better brother. be a better father, a better husband. Scripture says in Isaiah 26.3, you will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind has stayed in you because he trusted you. So taking our gaze off of inward looks and putting them onto Christ, not always looking how we feel, but looking at our Savior, those have health benefits of peace of mind, which can reduce the amount of stomach antacids we take and what have you. But these benefits are not the main focus. The main focus is worshiping God. So our sojourn through the book of Exodus, we've been viewing that worship. And we have a view of the theological education that the children of Israel are receiving as they sojourn out of it, as they witness, experience, and learn more who God is and also how he is to be worshiped. You know this morning's text we read of the ratification of the covenant God made with Israel. Now this is a formal ritual to seal that which was spoken by Moses and given to the children of Israel. Now the inauguration of the covenant actually began in chapter 19 where God called Moses and the elders and the people of Israel together. In chapter 20, the Lord gives them the Ten Commandments, also known as the Ten Words. And we read at the end of 20 to verse 19 of chapter 23, the giving of the book of the covenant. Now the Book of the Covenant, also known as the Covenant Code, contains various judicial rulings that help flesh out, in particular, the second table of the Ten Commandments of loving our neighbor and living everyday life. But it also contains laws concerning the Sabbath and observance of three annual feasts. In chapter 23, from verses 20 to 33, we read of God's promises given that are connected to the people's obedience. Chapter 20, 21, we read that, so the people stood afar off, but Moses drew near the thick darkness where God was. And in some ways, that area between chapter 20, verse 21, and today's text, 24, verse one, that was a bit of an insert in the narrative. And now the story is again picking up at the mountain here in 24, one. God said to Moses, Come up to the Lord, you and Aaron and Nadab and Abihu, the 70 elders of Israel. Worship from afar, and Moses alone shall come near the Lord." Now, the Lord is calling His people to worship, isn't He here? This is the first corporate worship service we see for the children of Israel. And this ceremony in chapter 24 is a ratification of those terms of the covenant. And just by way of a reminder, a covenant is an agreement initiated by God, includes binding living relationship with blessings and obligations. And within the covenant contract, blessings are stated if conditions are kept and obeyed, and threats and curses if conditions are broken. Now there's a number of covenants, like I said before in scripture, the Adamic covenant, the Way covenant, the Abrahamic covenant, The Mosaic Covenant which we are looking at today, the Davidic Covenant, and of course all those covenants progressively build and point to the New Covenant. Now we can see an excellent illustration of the covenant in the covenant of marriage. Two people, not related, are united, made one. Blessings and obligations are declared as well as oaths taken. It's an illustration of Christ and His Church, His Bride. And the wedding ceremony is a ratification or a public formal ceremony declaring that a covenant union and bond is between that couple. has taken place and they're entering into that. Now here in Exodus, we see that God is drawing the people onto himself, set free to worship. He was to be their God and they were to be his people. God's design was to be with them, to tabernacle with them. And we'll see more of this, Lord willing, as we get into the plans and instructions and the making of the tabernacle in future chapters. Now the people were set free to worship him, but they were not free to worship as they wished. They had to be mindful of God's instructions. And the very elements are foundational of how God relates to his people. The features we see here in the Mosaic Covenant are not just for the Mosaic Covenant folks at that time, but we also see how God relates to man in the New Covenant. Now, one of the things we could take away from looking at these aspects of God, establishing how his people relate to him, is the exclusivity of it. There's only one way. All roads do not lead to God, as you might hear often. Sincerity of heart is not the primary truth that drives someone to true worship. Someone could be sincere in their heart, their heart's desire to worship God, but they can be sincerely wrong. Now, one of the things that make Christians so offensive in many in the eyes of the world is their certainty of the claims of Christianity. Last Sunday evening, I quoted a pagan citizen arguing with a Christian in the second century, and the pagan was drawing attention to this very thing. And then he said, but what makes you people so offensive is your stubbornness. You're so sure of your answers. Now, we live in a world today that holds uncertainty as one of the highest values that someone could have. We're in some very confused times. I don't know if I'm breaking any new news to you, but people no longer hold truth as an objective thing, but rather subjective, where each person can hold on to their own personal truth. His or her can then explain and define what that truth is. And even speaking of his or her, such wording like that is being questioned today. And now we, and I'm speaking of modern man, are in a great sea of confusion, aren't we? And the only solid thing that people seem to agree upon is that there's only one thing you can be certain about, and that is that we can't be certain about anything. In other words, you can be sure about one thing, we can't be sure about anything. And as crazy as that sounds, it kind of illustrates the times we are in. Yet, scripture gives us certainties. And we can be sure of God's word. We can be thankful he has not left us to grope and to try to find, but indeed has revealed himself and how he is to be worshiped. Now the first thing we see in the covenant is initiated by God. God has condescended to us. The children of Adam in a fallen state do not have the ability nor the strength to find God on their own. I should add in that fallen state, man does not even have the desire to seek the true and living God. That is why the Apostle Paul, quoting from the Old Testament, declares in Romans chapter 3, verses 10 through 12, there is none righteous, no, not one. There's none who understands. There's none who seeks after God. They've all turned aside. They have together become unprofitable. There is none who does good, no, not one. No one who understands, no one who seeks, no not one. That is pretty encompassing, isn't it? If God was not the initiator, we would be without hope and left only as sons and daughters of Adam. For if God did not set his love upon us, there would be no second Adam. But thankfully, for God so loved the world, he gave his only begotten son. And what do we read in chapter 24 of Exodus verse 8? This is the blood of the covenant which the Lord has made with you. Man didn't make it with God, the Lord has made it with you. Now the second thing we see in today's text that worship requires and that is a mediator. A mediator is necessary when two parties need to come to an agreement. Now Moses identified with the children of Israel, for he was one, and he identified with God as his spokesman or as his prophet. Now we read in verse 2 and the beginning of verse 3, and Moses alone shall come up near the Lord, but they shall not come near, nor shall the people go up with him. So Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord and the judgments. Now we had a glimpse of this back in chapter three at the burning bush where God said to Moses in verse 10, come now therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel out of Egypt. We see this, don't we? And other places in Exodus and even Deuteronomy where we see Moses as a mediator when he stands between God and the people, excuse me, Numbers 14 rather than, There Moses intercedes for the people that God would not send the deserved judgment upon them in their complaining and rebellion. Now the children of Israel soon start to realize they needed a mediator. And after the giving of the Ten Commandments, the people realized that they were not prepared to stand before a holy God in his presence. There we read, now all the people witnessed the thunderings and the lightnings and the flashings. the sound of a trumpet and the mountain smoking. And when the people saw it, they trembled and stood afar off. And they said to Moses, you speak with us and we will hear, but let not God speak us lest we die." And again, we read a similar thing in verse seven of today's chapter, all that the Lord has said we will do, we will be obedient. That was the word of the Lord that came through Moses, the mediator. Psalm 24.3 declares to us, who may ascend into the hill of the Lord or who may stand in his holy place. Now, Dr. Ranahan, who preached here a couple of years ago, brought out to us and showed us clearly that it spoke of Christ. But we also see a type of Christ in Moses, ascending Sinai to speak with God and then coming down to speak with the people. And the children of Israel were learning very quickly that God was holy and they were not, and they needed a mediator before they could worship God. So Moses was a type of a greater than Moses, the Lord Jesus, who is the one mediator between God and man. No man goes to the father, but by him. Now, as we go into this text, we see that God's prescriptive way is indeed narrow and exclusive. We see another aspect, we see also in our text that our worship before the Lord is to be centered around the word of God. We read in verses three, so Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord's judgments. Now the words were the Ten Commandments and the judgments are what was contained in the Book of Covenant. And Moses not only told these people of the words, but we read in verse four, and Moses wrote all the words of the Lord. Now this is the second mention in the Bible of the Bible being written in the Bible. The first was in Exodus 17.14 when God told Moses, write this for a memorial in the book and recount it in the hearing of Joshua. You know, we read in 1 Timothy 4.13 that public reading of scripture was to be practiced. Well, here at Sinai, in this chapter 24, we see a precursor to that. This was the start of something that would be with God's people ever since that time. Now, with all the experiences the children of Israel went through, it was still the written word was to be that which were to teach them. Now, innately, Man knows that there is a spiritual realm. Even the unbeliever has some sense of a spiritual realm. There is something more beyond the material, physical world. But beyond that, man's understanding is darkened. Because of the effects of the fall, how he interacts with the spiritual world is quite confused. His own imaginations lead him how he worshiped. There's a tendency to either worship a god who is made in the image more of like man's or to worship in a way in which man finds to be more fitting or perhaps even enjoyable. You know, even Peter on the Mount of Transfiguration was moved to worship in a way that was more directed by his emotions. That's when we heard a voice from heaven saying, this is my beloved son, hear him. It is to be the objective, written word of God that reveals how worship is to be done. Therefore, we're not left to our own imaginations. And that is what we read in 2 Timothy 3.16. All scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God, and should I add that the church of God, may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. And again, that goes for both the man of God and the church of God. Now, thankfully, we are not left to our own devices, but God has revealed it in his word. And we see that from the beginning here in Exodus 24. Now, another aspect of worship that requires, that God requires is that of sacrifice, more specifically, a blood sacrifice. Now blood sacrifice speaks to the people of God that worship is an issue of life and death. Man dare not approach a holy God with the issue of sin not dealt with. Now just to interject here, the first thing we read in that sacrifice that it was to be made on an altar. And the altar is something we read going all the way back to Genesis chapter 8 with Noah building an altar there. Now John McKay in his commentary points out that altars were more essential to worship than were temples or structures. He writes, an altar can exist without a temple, but no temple can exist without an altar. The altar represented where God was and symbolically a place to approach God. Now oftentimes in scripture in the Old Testament we see an altar being built where there was a theophany, an appearance of God in some way. Now some instructions on the construction of this altar were given back in chapter 20 verses 24 through 26 and we see that this altar is based right at the foot of the mountains where all can partake. Now pillars were erected to represent the 12 tribes of Israel as the scripture says and young men most likely the firstborn of families who, according to Philip Rankin, served as temporary priests until God appointed the priests and the Levites to carry out those responsibilities. These were the ones who came and sacrificed on the altar. And we read in verse 5, then he sent young men of the children of Israel who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to the Lord. Now we notice that two sacrifices were made here, the burnt offering and the peace offering. Now the burnt offering was that which was totally consumed, indicating that it was wholly and totally dedicated and dedication given to God as a sacrifice of atonement. Sin means death. And the wages of sin is death. Life had to be given to totally pay those wages. And scripture tells us life is in the blood and that without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin. Now the children of Israel already had some understanding of life and death, seriousness of sin, and blood atonement from the time of the tenth plague, the death of the firstborn. Now at the time the blood of the Passover lamb was sprinkled on the doorway, all the Hebrews would be saved through that. And all those who didn't have the blood applied experienced death. So sacrifice would speak to the children of Israel, the idea of substitutionary atonement. An animal was sacrificed on their behalf, in their stead. And also the sacrifice commuted a dreadful warning. Again, Philip Rankin writes, in the ancient world, a covenant typically was sealed in blood to show what would happen if either party failed to comply. It was death and judgment to some, but also was mercy and life to others. So this was established in the hearts of the people, the seriousness of sin and the price paid to propitiate or to satisfy God's righteous and holy demand for the price to be paid. It puts us in mind of the hymn, Stricken, Smitten, and Afflicted. I can't help to think that Pastor Fred might have that on his program for this Friday night. Could be wrong. But in that hymn, A line in that hymn states, ye who think of sin but lightly, nor suppose the evil great, here may view its nature rightly, here its guilt may estimate. The looking at the sacrifice offered ought to convey to us, give us proper estimation of the degree and the depths of sin. Now the bloody sacrifice would cause any witness to sense the weightiness of sin. We also read of the peace offering or the fellowship offering. This offering wasn't consumed in the fire like the burnt offering, but rather it was grilled, as it were, and it was a shared offering. We read more of this in Leviticus chapter eight, but the main thing we want to see about both these sacrifices was the blood of the sacrifice. That is key. It was at the Passover. the blood was key. And here in Exodus 24, it is also essential. We read in verse six, and Moses took half the blood and put it in basins, and half the blood he sprinkled on the altar. Now the blood is that which ratified and sealed the covenant between God and his people. It was the basis for them being in relationship with him. The blood by which the covenant was ratified was the seal and the basis of their union between Yahweh and the people. And we read in verse 7 that Moses took half the blood and sprinkled it on the altar and that he read the book of the covenant again. The first time in verse 3, the people responded with all the words that the Lord said we will do. Now, after the sacrifice was witnessed, after that first reading and the blood was applied to the altar and they see the significance of the ratification of the covenant. The response of the people a second time was the same, except they added three words. All that the Lord has said we will do and be obedient. And be obedient. Now that's another element of worship here, and that is the response of the people. Obedience is a language of love. We know that, don't we, by the Lord's words, if you love me, keep my commandments. And as we saw in the third section of the Heidelberg Catechism, which was the section on gratitude, obedience is in response to God's initiation to reveal himself, to God giving us a mediator, God giving us his word and God giving us a sacrifice. It's in response to the good things God has given. Their declaration of obedience wasn't to attain those things, but in response to God giving His mercy and grace. Psalm 144.15 declares, happy are the people whose God is the Lord. Psalm 146.5 states, happy is the man who has the God of Jacob for his people, whose hope is the Lord, his God. Psalm 33, 12, blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he has chosen as his own inheritance. God's design was to have a nation of priests, but it takes response from all that the Lord has done, that God indeed would be their all in all. No divided loyalty, singleness of heart, God was to be their everything. You know, my wife sometimes shares with me things that the little kindergartners and first graders say at school. Kind of puts me in mind of the old Lawrence Welk, not Lawrence Welk, art link letter show. Kids say the, yeah, you know what they say. Put me in mind of it. Well, recently the children colored and cut out crosses to decorate the classroom for Easter. In the center of the cross were the words, Jesus is blank. There's a blank space there. And the children were to fill in the blank. And a variety of answers were given. Some kids put Jesus is love. They put love there, Jesus is love. Other responses was Savior, King, Jesus is awesome, et cetera. All true and good answers. But one little boy asked if he could write three words on his. Well, what do you want to write? Jesus is everything to me. Yes, honey, you could write that. We'll make an exception here. And after getting permission, the little boy went and wrote, Jesus is everything to me. Everything to me. Out of the mouth of babes. Or Isaiah 11.6, and a little child shall lead them. Puts me in mind of that. But the little boy sums up what every true believer ought to say of Christ. He is everything to me. In verse 8, Moses took the blood and sprinkled it on the people and declared, This is the blood of the covenant which the Lord has made with you, according to all these words. Now again, all these things pointed to the Lord Jesus, whose blood was shed for an everlasting covenant. to one who is greater than Moses. And as our brother Mike read again from Hebrews 9, please allow me to read one more time. How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal spirit offered himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? And for this reason, he is a mediator of a new covenant by means of death. For the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of eternal inheritance. How much more? Christ has come to put an end to sacrifice because he is the fulfillment of what the Mosaic Covenant pointed to. And his blood has eternal qualities to it. The blood is of the Lord. It's effectual for all eternally, all eternally. Therefore it has eternal, it gives an eternal inheritance. You know, the young men at Sinai gathered oxen, but the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world, was sent by the Father and came voluntarily, and in the Son. Christ is the altar, the place where we approach God, and He is the sacrifice. Now Moses said, this is the blood of the covenant. But Christ said, for this is my, not the, but my blood of the covenant, which is shed for the many, for the remissions of sins. So we look back on this narrative, this story, the revocation of the covenant on Sinai that God gave Moses and the children of Israel. And by comparison, we think of the greatness of the new covenant. Our hearts ought to well up with thankfulness and to think that God initiated his love towards us while we were yet sinners. And now we love him. Why? Because he first loved us. He gave us the God-man, who's the one mediator between God and man. And he knows, he knows, this mediator knows our sinful and helpless state. Therefore, he's offered himself. as a propitiatory sacrifice. And his precious blood poured out for us. And that blood was not a temporary sacrifice, waiting for another, but is final and complete, for he proclaimed as he hung on the cross, it is finished. And he gave us his enduring word that tells us all these wonderful things. And how do we respond? with gratefulness and obedience and joy, and that He is our everything. And we live each day singing in our hearts and sharing with others. What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. Now some may say this is exclusive, but every Christ-trusting saint says it is wonderful. Let me close with this. Today is celebrated by the Church Catholic, and I don't mean Roman Catholic Church, but the Universal Church, as Palm Sunday. It's the Sunday before Easter. All the Jews came to Jerusalem to see Jesus, who came in humbly and lowly riding on a donkey. Now think about the people who welcomed him that day. They were the ones trying to keep the old covenant, going to the temple, offering sacrifices. Those people greeted Jesus with enthusiasm, waving palm branches and shouting, Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. And they were wild with excitement. They had heard that the man many had hoped would be the Messiah had done some wondrous things. The one who performed many miracles, raising folks from the dead, healing the sick and the lame, casting out demons. They were hoping and believing this was He. He was the one to come and save them and deliver them. Of course in their minds that deliverance was deliverance from the power of Rome. Well, in the days that followed, things weren't quite working out how they thought they should happen. Things weren't unfolding according to plan. In fact, they saw this man that they had pinned their hopes on, and instead of delivering them from the Roman rule, he was taken prisoner by Rome. And he was mocked and tortured, and how quickly they churned on him, joining in the angry throng, shouting, crucify him, crucify him. Well, they didn't know, did they? That this was the Lamb of God, the ultimate sacrifice, His blood, His precious blood, the blood of the new covenant. But thanks be to God, we do know. And we have the experience of a partaking of Christ and his shedding of the blood for the remission of our sins. We've been brought to the new covenant because of that blood, and we can then boldly proclaim, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Would you pray with me, dear ones? Our gracious heavenly Father, So often we feel like spoiled children who wallow in many riches, and today is such a day to be given to us this Lord's Day, to be given to us this structure where we could gather, even to live in a land where we still have liberty to join together without fear of persecution. We have the riches of your word given to us, the riches of the sacraments and ordinances, this table before us. many abundant riches, and all through the greatest riches we have in Christ Jesus, we have the Son, and he is everything to us. Lord, we ask that you continue to be with us as we continue this day to worship you, to uplift your name, and it's in response, a response of gratitude and thankfulness, because you have been good to us through our wonderful Savior, Jesus Christ. Thank you that we can commit this, the proclaiming of your word, this service, even as we go into the Lord's table now, we commit all these things into your hands, in Christ's name, amen.