Well, we are looking in question 35. If you have your catechism, feel free to turn there with us. But the question, how is the covenant of grace administered under the New Testament? And the answer, under the New Testament, when Christ the substance was exhibited, the same covenant of grace was and still is to be administered in the preaching of the word and the administration of the sacraments of baptism and the Lord's Supper, in which grace and salvation are held forth in more fullness, evidence, and efficacy to all nations. And so, we see there are things that are the same as well as things that present a change. Of course, we've already seen that Christ himself was foretold, foreshadowed, promised in the Old Testament ministration of the covenant of grace. And so, Christ himself coming is the substance of those things. This is the same covenant of grace. We've looked at how ever since man's fallen to sin, God's dealings with man in favor and covenant have been founded upon grace and not the perfect obedience of mankind. And so we see a covenant of grace and it is still to be administered in the preaching of the word. This is something that is very evident through The Old Testament is very clear and this continues in the New Testament and that is we see the word of God being so central in God's covenant dealings with his people. We can just think of how God entered into a relationship with Abraham and set him apart. How did that come to pass? Well, he called Abraham, he spoke to him. his word and this is how he called forth his faith, that he would make him a great nation, that he would give him a land, that he would show him. All of the promises of God are conveyed in the word of God. And so it is no surprise as we continue on through the Old Testament to see how important the Word of God is in his dealings with his people. We see this in the great step forward in the history of Israel with Moses being called. The weakness that he claims would make him unfit to be a shepherd and a savior to lead the people out of Egypt was that he was hindered in his speech. And of course, that misses the point. Whose word, whose speaking, whose voice was going to declare these things and bring them to pass? It was the Lord's. And so God provided Aaron to be a spokesperson. But it was the word of the Lord that had such power. in being declared to Pharaoh, hear the voice of the Lord, let my people go, and so forth. Again, the word of God delivering forth the scriptures through Moses and the giving of the law in written form to restrain our sin. The prophets being sent to rekindle hope in the covenant promises of God and the promised Messiah who would come and the calls back to repentance in the promises of judgment upon the enemies of God, all of this coming through the Word of God. And so the New Testament, that is not something that changes. We still have the Word of God being that primary means of grace that This is where the gospel is recorded. If you want to know what is the good news, what is the hope that we have living in a fallen world, we must go to the scriptures. You can live in this created world, which certainly declares the glory of God, as we read in Psalm 19, and the goodness of God, as we read in Romans 1. and should lead us to a place of awe and worship and thanksgiving as we continue reading in Romans 1. But the sinful condition of men, we will suppress the truth in unrighteousness, we will not give thanks, and it is the work of the Lord Jesus Christ to address that sin and that unbelief. And it is in the scriptures that we read of Jesus Christ. It's important to remember that even those who were present for the coming of Christ, those who witnessed his life of perfection, his supernatural power, and all the rest, could see all of those things with unseeing eyes. As Jesus would say, he who has ears to hear, let him hear. He who has eyes to see, let him see. many would not see. And so even the Gospel being lived out, being accomplished in time and history was not itself sufficient, but the Lord Jesus showed in his own example as he went from city to city preaching and proclaiming the message of the kingdom of God as we have that great commission that he gives to his disciples before his ascension into heaven. They are to go into all the nations and they are to preach the gospel and that brings us to our text here in Mark 16 which we looked at briefly last week here in this record of this commission that we have more fully recorded in Matthew 28, 18 through 20. Notice in verse 15 of Mark 16, and he said to them, go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. As Paul would say, he served as an ambassador from heaven, an ambassador from God himself. who came to offer terms of peace, who came to proclaim that there was a way that there could be forgiveness and reconciliation. And so this proclaimed message, it's certainly not to say that you can reduce God himself to the written page, but in terms of God's dealing with man, it's difficult to overstate how significant the scriptures are. the word of God. It is certainly God's design and choice that he has given us, what his voice breathed out as we read in 2 Timothy 3.16. God's word is where we hear his voice calling to us as Jesus would say of the good shepherd, that those who were his sheep would hear his voice and follow him. And as we read in Hebrews chapter 3 and chapter 4, it is in the Word of God that the Spirit speaks, as he quotes from Psalm 95 and says, the Spirit says, and as we read about the Word of God being living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing our very hearts and laying us bare before the eyes of God. It is in the Word of God that we find Christ held forth, the Gospel proclaimed, and not only is it that message of the Gospel wherein we first become reconciled to God, but that same Scripture, the Word of God written, if you go with me to 1 Peter chapter 1, notice that the Gospel is recorded in the pages of Scripture, even the Old Testament Scriptures. Hopefully that's not as much of a surprise to us to hear that said now that we've been looking at these things, but Notice in 1 Peter 1 verse 8, though you have not seen Him, you love Him. Speaking of Jesus Christ, though you do not now see Him, you believe in Him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory. obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls. And so Peter is writing about the amazing gospel that not only is a message that is proclaimed, but is transformative and is being believed through the powerful working of God's Holy Spirit in their day. These people that he writes to are believers in Jesus. having never seen Him, they love Him and believe in Him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible. And so in terms of this salvation of their souls, look at verse 10, concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you in the things that have been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look." And, of course, we see in those verses something about the Old Testament. We see that these Old Testament prophets were being used by God, the messages that they were giving to God's people were messages about the grace of God, about the very salvation that Peter's original readers had just experienced. which had come to them, how? Through the sufferings of Christ and through the subsequent glory. So things that had not yet happened in space and time were nonetheless predicted and prophesied and indicated in the Old Testament prophets. So it, again, confirms what we know to be the case in the Old Testament revelation, that it's not an unchristian message in that sense, that it is focused upon Christ himself as the way of salvation. But not only does it teach us that as we seek to study the scriptures, that we look to the Old Testament in that lens, in that way, expecting to see these things, But the main point Peter is making in terms of his readers is, because they weren't beset with the same stumbling in this way, I think, that our more modern understanding of the Old Testament in the last couple hundred years is what has really led to a view of the Old Testament, it's a very modern view that does not see the promises of Jesus Christ present there. But for these people, why does he bring this up about the prophets prophesying about the grace that was to be theirs? Well, in terms of explaining to them and encouraging them in further experience of their faith, How was it that they loved a Savior they had never seen? How was it that they had joy inexpressible and full of glory to believe things that they had not seen acted out in front of them? in terms of the incarnation of Jesus Christ, the Son of God come from heaven as a child of man, or his life of perfect obedience, or his death upon the cross, or his resurrection, his coming to life in that tomb and walking out in about 40 days going up to heaven. It is because they had the Word of God. They had these scriptures that they were studying. And just as the prophets were searching and inquiring carefully, studying the Gospel, seeking to understand the Gospel that the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories, it's the same Word of God that the people that Peter is speaking to have come to understand the Gospel through. that these Old Testament prophets, it was revealed to them in verse 12 that they were serving not themselves but you in the things that have been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you. So you see how the preaching of the Word of God, the reading of it, the opening up of it by those who are sent, ministers of Christ, to proclaim the Word of God, the message from God to men, This is no less than in the Old Testament of a central importance in terms of how the covenant of grace is administered. The Word of God doesn't drop from view to be replaced by simply certain experiences, certain rituals certainly. No, the Word of God is where we go to read the gospel, to hear the gospel, to be confronted with the reality of who Jesus Christ is. And it is the Holy Spirit who is using that good news things into which angels long to look, He is making plain to the children of men by the power of God. And so not only does it reveal Christ to us, not only is the Word of God where God has made His offer of peace to us and the Holy Spirit uses this. to bring an awareness of the good news to the fallen children of men and give them faith to receive it and believe it unto eternal life so that they have such joy and hope and longing for this great inheritance that is unfading and imperishable. But this same Word of God has an ongoing role to play. This is still the primary means forward, past that point of conversion where we come to believe in Jesus Christ. So I've believed in Jesus, and I love Him, and I want to be a faithful disciple of His. He's left me in this world as I'm awaiting that glorious inheritance. And so what next? What am I supposed to do? How should I show love to God? How should I live as a saved child of man? And so the Word of God not only shows us the gospel, not only does it show us Jesus Christ, but it is also the lesson book. from God where the Holy Spirit teaches us how we're to walk, what we're to aspire to. This is where God comes as our teacher and we are his disciples, we are his students. And he teaches us again the things that we had known but have forgotten largely. He clears away the dead wood in our heart, that hardness, that stoniness that Ezekiel speaks of. Not only does he give us a new life to believe in Jesus Christ, but he is working in us, conforming us into the image of the Savior as we read in Romans chapter 8 verse 30. And so, continuing on in Peter's letter in verse 13, therefore preparing your minds for action and being sober-minded. In other words, he's speaking to those who have believed the gospel, they have this hope, this joy, they understand, they've never seen Jesus Christ, but they've heard the gospel and believed it, and they believe in Him. And so what should they be concerned with? What is going to help them in the next chapter here? And so, therefore, preparing your minds for action and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance. but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, you shall be holy for I am holy." That's not only a declaration showing the end goal, the telos of God's plan for His children, that He will have holy children who will fellowship with Him without any hindrance of sin between them. But it is also written in the Scriptures as the call as to what we are to pursue. We are to pursue being obedient children. We are to pursue not being conformed to the passions of your former ignorance. Since it is written, You shall be holy, for I am holy. And if you call on Him as Father, who judges impartially according to each one's deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the feudal ways inherited from your forefathers. not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb, without blemish or spot. He was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory so that your faith and hope are in God. Having purified your souls, by your obedience to the truth, for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly, from a pure heart. since you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God. For all flesh is like grass, and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever. And this word is the good news that was preached to you. And so how are they to understand this life that they have in God? How are they to grow in that? How are they to purify their souls by your obedience to the truth? Well, they are to look back to what God has used to grow in them a new life, that they have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable through the living and abiding Word of God. And so again, in the New Testament, administration of the covenant of grace, Christ has come What do we need in terms of the message from God? Well, we certainly need the gospel itself, that heart of the message where we read of the Son of God who has come to be the Savior of sinners, of our sin and our desperate need of salvation, the judgment that will come upon sin, and the offer of grace and mercy in Jesus Christ that we might have as a gift of God by faith in His Son. We need that, but when we look at the Scriptures and consider, well, there's a lot in there that goes beyond just that central aspect of the message. We have the law of God in the Scriptures. We have the epistles in the New Testament, which are these practical applications of the will of God for the lives of His children in all manner of different areas of life. And it is this Word of God, again, that has been given, which is described as not a perishable seed. but an imperishable through the living and abiding Word of God." The picture there in verse 23 is that there is the genesis of life within you, what Jesus described to the woman at the well, a well of water, of living water, welling up to eternal life. That was the promise of God. And so when we come and we hear the gospel, a seed was planted within us that has flowered in this faith in Christ, this new vision of the glory of Christ, our need of a Savior that God has accomplished within us. But that seed does not just flower and perish. It's not given and planted just for a brief moment of effect and work in our lives, but it is an imperishable seed so that what has been planted within us is bound with this living water, this eternal life. The seed itself is the living and abiding Word of God. It's not something that you outgrow or leave behind or lose along the way. But it is, as we read in verse 24, all flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever. And so this is what Peter directs his readers to as they're confronting persecution, they're being shaken, they're being tempted. And he's calling them to remember that the far surpassing weight of glory and all the promises that God has given them, that there is no suffering for the brief time that we're on this earth that would make it worth letting go of Jesus Christ. And, of course, the Word of God is what he directs them to. to sustain them through a period of persecution, to lead them in the path of obedience. It is an obedience to the truth. Again, this is something that our day and age, we even use the language respecting truth in our culture. Well, that's your truth. You need to live your truth. This is my truth. Truth has become subjective in terms of the perspective of any individual you're speaking to. They are the only ones who can discern and know truth for themselves. And of course there is the great person whose perspective does become determinative, who sees everything and knows everything and therefore his concept of what is good and true is authoritative and that of course is God in heaven. This is where the Word of God is, again, sorely needed in our day. It is through obedience to the truth, it is being renewed in our minds, not being conformed to this world, but being renewed by the transforming of our minds, that we are to continue in this path of being called after God. And so we're to love one another earnestly from a pure heart. Since you've been born again, not a perishable seed, but imperishable. And that last phrase after the quote from Isaiah about the glory of God's word, how valid it is, how eternal it is and abiding it is. it remains forever, that the men who hear this word and either accept it or not, in their native life they're like grass that grows up and withers compared to the eternal word of God that remains forever. And what was the message of the New Testament church? What was the preaching that was leading to the conversion of people to profess the Lord Jesus Christ, to take his name upon themselves? Well, in the very ending phrase of chapter one, in this word, this word, he's just referred to the word of the Lord that remains forever. that is identified with the scriptures, the word that God has spoken. This word is the good news that was preached to you. And so when we think of what preaching is to be, it's not to be anything other than a message from heaven which is found in the written word of God being opened and applied and pressed upon the hearers. It is not something that men are called upon to formulate, we're not called upon to when we think of a pastor and even the language of writing his sermon I understand what that means but we really must view the preaching ministry of the church in this light for it to retain a faithfulness to God that it is a messenger being given a message. much as the prophets of the Old Testament were filled with the Spirit and given the message, the Word of God, to declare to His people. Well, if you're a faithful minister of Jesus Christ in the New Testament church, you are taking the Scriptures, the Word of God, and you are making sure that that is the message that you are preaching in the covenant of grace in the New Testament. And so when that happens, when it is the Scriptures being held forth and opened in the preaching of the Word. That is where God is still working, that His voice is heard, and He is calling His people to His Son for salvation and calling them after Himself in obedience. to the truth that His Spirit would lead and direct and guide. And so, as we read back to our answer under the New Testament, when Christ the substance was exhibited, the same covenant of grace was and still is to be administered. in the preaching of the Word. And so that's the first and primary way that we encounter Christ in this world and come to believe in him and then are led by him as the Good Shepherd. But it goes on, and the administration of the sacraments of baptism in the Lord's Supper. Now we know that these are secondary in several ways. We know that they require the Word of God to institute them. They didn't just eternally exist, but God provided them for the help of his church through the Word of God, and so they depend upon the Word of God, not the other way around. We also know that they're secondary because we see, for example, in the life of Jesus, that comment in the Gospels that is so significant, he himself baptized no one. But he did go from town to town preaching the word of God. And so if baptism was the primary means of bringing someone into this new kingdom of God, do you not think the Lord Jesus in his example would have reflected that? Surely he would have. And so he came preaching the word, but not baptizing. Even Paul, to a lesser degree, Give thanks there in 1 Corinthians chapter 1 about how he did not baptize many of them. They're arguing over who baptized who, as though that's the great thing. What was common to all those believers at Corinth was that they had all heard the message of life in the preaching of the gospel. And that was how he calls them back to that in humbling them, how they have exalted themselves over one another. It was by relation to the plain preaching of the word of God that these gifts were even useful or valuable. Paul would go on to say in his letter to the Corinthians that he would rather speak one word of prophecy, that is, speaking plainly the Word of God to his people, than 10,000 words in a tongue, even if it was the Word of God. If it's in a language that the people who are hearing can't even understand, that's may be inspiring and awesome, but in terms of how it ranks in the usefulness in God's kingdom, it's measured according to how well it brings the word of God to his people. And so the administration of the sacraments of baptism, baptism as we read in Matthew chapter 28, we see baptism as a concept and a practice in the Old Testament. We have various washings referenced in the Old Testament, and it was a symbol of God's work of purifying and cleansing. And out of that rich Old Testament heritage we have John the Baptist, who is an Old Testament figure in his own right, the last of the sons of the Old Testament in Jesus' estimate that none was greater than John, but of the New Testament, of those who were privileged to follow after the sacrifice of Christ upon the cross, which John did not get to see, that they had a privilege, even the least of them, seeing the Son of God crucified upon the tree. and seeing the Spirit poured out, they had a privilege that was far greater, and even the greatest of the Old Testament prophets in terms of what they were privileged to see. But John came, and it was not considered just strange and unusual. as he came baptizing and preaching this message of repentance, preparing the way of the Lord being that herald that Isaiah had spoken of. He even is confronted by these messengers from Jerusalem. They want to know, who are you claiming to be, buddy? Are you the prophet? Are you saying you're a messiah, you've got a great following going on here? But they didn't struggle to understand what's this new thing that you're doing baptizing people. No, they understood that it was a symbol of the repentance that he was preaching, the cleansing that God would do to his people. and also a marking out of those who are giving themselves to repent and believe, and those who would have no part. And John keeps that connection very clear because these Pharisees come, and whatever their motives, whether they are being embarrassed back home because they are falling behind and they want to be leaders, but for whatever their motives, they come and seek baptism at the hand of John. And what is his answer? Well, sure, come on over. No, he says. It's not just an empty symbol and you can't separate it from the repentance that it's a picture of. You're a brood of vipers. What are you talking about? You want to be baptized, marked out as those who are going to seek after repentance and welcome the Christ who's coming and whose way we are seeking to prepare. Go and bear the fruits in keeping with repentance and then you can come back and we can talk about this matter of your baptism. And so John goes proclaiming a baptism of repentance and this becomes in the New Testament church that permanent symbol by the provision of God and we see that very clearly. Jesus does not himself baptize but he does send his disciples. Not only with this preached message, which is that primary means where as they are looking to the Word of God and bringing that message to His people, this is how God calls people unto Himself, out of darkness and into that marvelous light. But in Matthew chapter 28, by the conclusion of Jesus' earthly ministry, before He ascends up into heaven, He makes it abundantly clear that this was not just a temporary token of expressing this work of God that was commencing in that day, but rather calling on the great promises and symbol of water in the Old Testament, of the river of life that would flow in the days when these promises would be fulfilled with the coming of Messiah, the river that Ezekiel saw coming out from under the threshold of the temple that would be transformative throughout the world, the work of the Holy Spirit. being described as that life-giving water that would turn the desert into the garden. These are all aspects of what Jesus is making permanent now, beyond any question. This isn't just something that would pass away, but rather this becomes the symbol of commitment and membership in this new kingdom. And so in Matthew chapter 28 in verse 18, And Jesus came and said to them, All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always to the end of the age." And so we could look back how this was anticipated in the Old Testament, Isaiah chapter 52. who read about the messianic figure who will sprinkle many nations. And here Jesus is fulfilling this by instituting baptism. Now, it is a corollary to circumcision in the Old Testament. And just as there was the call of Abraham by the Word of God into this covenant relationship with him and then followed the sign of that in circumcision many years later in Abraham's case. And we've looked in Galatians at the significance of that in the Old Testament, that it was his faith in the promises of God which centered around this coming Messiah. That's how he had righteousness. He didn't have a performative act of circumcision and then finally attain righteousness or status as being in covenant with God. Well, and much the same, it is that repentance itself looking to Jesus Christ, putting one's faith in Him, which is pictured in baptism. That is what joins you to Jesus Christ and that is where the substance of the covenant is established. But nonetheless, these things are parallel as being marks of the covenant. And so, what was it about circumcision in the Old Testament? Well, it was a picture of the cutting away of the old, dead, sinful self. In the Old Testament, the Lord would call upon through his servant Moses, you need to pray that the Lord would circumcise your hearts. We read that in Deuteronomy and other places. And so, it is the cutting away of that which is sinful, well, in much the same way, baptism. It's the washing away of that which is unclean. Peter speaks of this in terms of describing how it is that we're saved. We're saved through that washing away, not of the filth from the flesh. but the washing away of the old sinfulness, which is the powerful work of God's Spirit. It's also pointing to how the cleansing happens and who is the agent that God sends upon us to accomplish this cleansing, and it is the Holy Spirit. And this ties in with the whole concept of anointing in the Old Testament. which was done by oil or water in cases, which was a picture of the powerful Holy Spirit of God coming down upon a person, setting them apart, and empowering them for some great work that God had called them to. Well, baptism serves something of that function as well, in pointing us to the one who is poured out upon the people of God, filling them with power. And of course, water also has that added connotation of life. We've already made reference to the prophets again and again, describe how the scene is a dead scene, it's a desert, and then God comes and it's through his power, frequently pictured in the form of water, that life comes and it is life abundant. And so all of that is pictured in these sacraments. One other aspect that I think is very significant is that in both of these cases, this was not something casual. This was not something to be taken up and possibly laid back down again. Very clear in the Old Testament, right? If you're circumcised, that is a commitment, it is an identification for life. This isn't something that you're going to go and walk back. You're circumcised. You've identified with the covenant people of God and you need to believe these promises. You need to live according to this obedience to God that you have pledged yourself to. It's not a casual commitment. It's a lifelong commitment. It also served as a very identifiable way to take your stand with the people of God. And it's something that certainly you would exercise modesty with respect, but nonetheless, Paul would speak in the New Testament of those who were seeking to spy out the freedom that Titus, for example, was a Greek believer in the New Testament. And so what does that have to do, what's the correspondence here in the New Testament? Well, far more than it being an outward symbol that was permanent, no less permanent, no less visible, and in fact far more visible because you think about well you pour that water or you sprinkle that water and then you can look at that person in a day and not know. Were you baptized yesterday? Now if you'd seen someone circumcised, you would know. But in the New Testament, it is pointing to the presence of the Holy Spirit come upon you. that is to bear the fruit of the Spirit in your life, in no less a permanent and increasingly identifiable manner, that you should be able to look at a person, and of course, if all they ever do is have the outward symbol of these things, you won't be able to look at a person in 10 years. You know what? Am I right? Were you baptized 10 years ago? You won't be able to tell at all, but if it's not just an empty symbol, but they experience the reality of the Holy Spirit being poured out upon them, far more so than circumcision even in the Old Testament, you will be able to look and say, you were baptized by the Holy Spirit, weren't you? You are so marked out and different and changed and it's permanent. that it is the symbol of membership in the covenant. And I think it is intentional and deliberate and important that it's not the sign that would be visible and evident so much as the reality. And that was true even in the Old Testament. Again, read the prophets, read Moses even, calling God's people to live in the truth of this sign of circumcision. It was never enough to have simply the sign. They were to seek and pray for and to circumcise or even call it circumcise the foreskins of your hearts and love the Lord your God. Well, in the New Testament, it is intentional that it would be more of an emphasis and a focus upon the reality of the things signified. If you really want to show yourself to be part of the people of God in His covenant dealings in the New Testament, you can't, not that you were ever permitted to, But you can't preserve any outward mark of being joined to the covenant people of God short of a transformed life by the power of the Holy Spirit. That is how you bear the mark of the sign of the covenant in the New Testament. And so it was a glorious sign in the Old Testament, but because it focused upon the cutting away of the old, it certainly wasn't a different message, but the focus was upon the sinfulness that needed to be laid off in the Old Testament. And it involved the shedding of blood, which was also a powerful symbol in the Old Testament of how one could be free of sin. But here in the New Testament, death has given way to life. And it's the same message, but instead of the focus being upon that which must be let go, the focus is upon that which will cleanse you from that which must be let go. That which will empower you and make you alive. And so it's the same gospel. but presented in the positive and presented in terms of the symbol in a way that you must walk in the path of Jesus if you want to show, I bear the sign of the covenant in the New Testament. You must demonstrate the fruit of the Spirit. And so the sacrament of baptism is the New Testament correspondent to circumcision, and then the sacrament of the Lord's Supper. And they serve similar purposes. The one being that sign of commitment to the covenant people of God, that sign of joining yourself to the people of God and your acknowledgement that it would be God's work of grace in your life to make that a reality. That's what circumcision and then in the New Testament baptism speak of. But then we have in the Old Testament the Passover and in the New Testament the Lord's Supper. And in the Old Testament, the Passover was a two-fold message. It was, again, something that could be experienced, something you were to enter into. It wasn't just something to listen to as the primary means, which is the Word of God, which you must then respond to with faith and obedience. But these sacramental acts are inviting us to then give ourselves in our acts to the very gospel message. And so the Passover was twofold and involved in its original expression, of course, the shedding of blood. the smearing of the blood of the lamb, the Passover lamb. It wasn't just killed and eaten, but the very first thing that that death of the lamb was to accomplish and point to was the application of the blood of a substitute over one's household, that they might be spared and passed over by the angel of death, the judgment of God coming upon these rebels in the land of Egypt and powerful message to the people of Israel. It's not because they're Egyptians per se that they need to be afraid of the judgment of God, but it is because of a common problem which is a sinful rebellion against the Lord. And only in seeking the covering of the blood can one be spared. by the judgment of the Lord. And so in the New Testament, that's the same thing. We're supposed to all come in humility to the same point of truth and confession that we all deserve death And we must have a sacrifice, a Passover lamb, if you will, to take our place. And we must have that blood upon us or we will perish. And when we come to the Lord's table, it is a celebration and a commemoration of the death of the Lord Jesus. Do this in remembrance of me." The very serving of the table is a portrayal, a reminder of the death of Christ, the pouring out of his blood, the breaking of his body. This is what, again, just as Passover did, reminds us the penalty that our sins have incurred and the just desserts that we had in store, but the gracious mercy of God to provide. a Savior for us. And so Christ is our Passover lamb. Back to the Old Testament, the Passover also served as a commitment then. Having been spared, it was a commitment. These people were being called to leave Egypt. And it was certainly a call to leave the burden of slavery in Egypt, but it had these spiritual overtones. of bondage, of darkness, the furnace of Egypt it's called. And it very much is a picture of that kingdom of darkness that we're being called from. And so the people of Israel were to gird their loins and they were to cast out the leaven and they were to eat that feast with bitter herbs. And all of that was pointing to their need. They're no different than the Egyptians in that they have the contaminant of sin. They need blood that they might be forgiven and they are called then to throw out the sin that would contaminate them. And this was what leaven was a picture of, a powerful picture of how insidious and pervasive, and if you leave it, it will just worm its way through everything, like the yeast in the lump of dough in Jesus' example about the kingdom. The people of Israel were called to cast out the leaven out of their tents in a visual and performative act of commitment to Throw away the sin. to throw away that pervasive, insidious influence from their homes, from their lives, from everything that they own. They're cast the leaven out of their tent. And in no less way are God's people in the New Testament to examine ourselves, as we read in 2 Corinthians 13 and 1 Corinthians 11, to examine ourselves, to not come bringing all the leaven of sin with us. and to look at a sacrifice that God has provided in His Son dying upon the cross and have a continued peaceful and casual relationship with our sin that cost Him His life. We're called to break with our sin, to not play games with this Savior, but to examine ourselves. And there's that language of judgment in 1 Corinthians 11, where Paul warns, why is it that the Corinthians have fallen under the displeasure of their Father in heaven? That some are weak and some are sick and some have even died in the very act of coming to this table, because they had perverted it to their own end, they had divorced it from any sense of repentance from sin. And they were, as it would be as if in Old Testament Israel, them saying, well, that's a nice meal, I'll eat that lamb, but I'll just keep on my leaven, thank you. I'm not willing to change my life, I'm not willing to let go of anything. Well, that's what it would be like in the church at Corinth to come to the Lord's Supper, which is intended to picture the terrible price that was paid for our salvation from sin, and then to be just so casual and flippant about retaining those very sins in our lives as we come to celebrate the glorious sacrifice of the one who loved us so much that he gave himself up for us all. And of course, the bitter herbs in the Old Testament is another aspect of that. The bitterness, the sorrow of sin being pictured there, and the preparation to move forward at the direction of God, being girded in your loins. We're going to leave, and we're ready to follow. God is going to guide us and lead us. And so all of that is simplified, but it's the exact same function being served in the New Testament with the Lord's Supper. We have a lamb who has been slain, so we don't kill any animals in anticipation of that. We look back to the blood that was shed upon the cross and remember His death until He comes as He calls us to. And we're also to be letting in repentance, humbly letting go of our sins as we come because we can't have fellowship with sin and with the Savior from sin. And so we read all of this and we'll have to look in more detail at 1 Corinthians 11 and then these other passages next week. But wanted to have at least that overview of how these two compare. We are out of time, so Lord willing, we'll pick that up next week. So let's close with prayer. Our Father in Heaven, we give thanks to You for the glorious grace of the Gospel. We thank You that the Gospel was true in the Old Testament, that a Savior would come who would be the Lamb to take away the sin of God's people, to be the sin-bearer, and to render His life and substitute for our own. And we thank You that here in the New Testament These things have become so plain in the coming of Your Son and His taking on of human flesh, and that as a Son of God and Son of Man, He gave Himself up for us. We thank You for Your love for us, Your death for us, and Your life for us. as our living Savior raised from the dead. O Lord, may we give ourselves more freely to you without reservation, and may we be stirred in our hearts, Lord, unto repentance as we contemplate the true meaning of our baptism As we contemplate the true significance of the Lord's Supper, O Lord, may we not be guilty of going through empty motions, but may we look for your work in our lives by your Holy Spirit to accomplish those very things in great power that we might truly have in greater measure the experience of your blessing that is promised to all in your covenant. We thank you for Jesus and by faith in him we have this life and your grace is upon our lives. We pray this in his name. Amen.