I'd like to invite you to take your Bibles to the book of 1 Corinthians chapter 11 this morning, 1 Corinthians chapter 11. Well, spring is sprung and is springing, isn't it? And all the woodland animals are making their presence known. Won't be long before we see them on the side of the road, not moving. One of the most amazing creatures that God created, I think, is the beaver. Beavers are interesting, aren't they? I mean, they're adorable with those big teeth. Looks like they're always smiling. Those wily tails. I just wonder what it was like for Noah. You know, it was like, stay, stay, you know? He has them lined up with the termites and the woodpeckers and said, don't even think about it, boys. Maybe he had a bag of mulch and he just fed it out to them a little bit. Speaking of mulch, by the way, our life builders yesterday invested their day in helping many people. Now, the offer was extended to the prime timers of our church. Any work you need done around your house, I'm not quite a prime timer, but You didn't sign up, and so after they went to several of their houses, they came to my house, and I couldn't believe the amount of work, taking out trees and laying out our mulch. I so, so appreciate it. They did a beautiful job. I just woke up this morning smiling, just so enjoying all the hard work they did. And I was thinking about those bags of mulch and how maybe, maybe it could keep beavers occupied for a time. You ever thought about why do beavers make dams? It's really self-serving, it really is. I know, I know. The idea of our world is that nothing that a woodland creature does could ever be bad because they're just doing what they're pre-programmed to do. Again, in the secular culture, what it's evolved to do. But sometimes they could be just a downright nuisance, right? There are things that, I mean, we don't want rats crawling through the auditorium this morning. That wouldn't be helpful. There are creatures that can cause problems, and we are called to subdue the earth, and that's stay, beaver, stay. I mean, it's that. In our house, stay, Bruchko. He's the beagle, and God made him to bark, but I don't like it. Why do beavers make dams? Well, it's self-serving by, Stopping the water, it causes the water in their immediate vicinity to be deeper. They're great swimmers. It's a place for them to store their food, the sticks and other things. Even in the winter, even though the water may freeze up above, below they store sticks to nibble on. They're stick jerky. And then the other thing is they're horrible at running, you know, they're not great walkers, but they're awesome at swimming. And so having the water there creates, in a sense, a moat for them, it's a protection. A lot of other animals that don't do well in water, beavers can easily escape. How many have ever seen, not a groundhog, but have you ever seen a beaver in the wild? It's not real common. Even if you're looking for them, even if you see the beaver dam, it's not always easy to find them. But you do, you can see them. And if you can't find them, you can always watch a nature documentary and learn all about it that way. Sometimes we're like beavers. Sometimes we're very quick to take care of ourselves, thoughtless of the consequences to those around us. The church at Corinth was doing much the same thing, even as it relates to the Lord's table. Now two weeks ago we talked about the Lord setting the Lord's table, how that we're to be utensils of unity that gather in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, to think about his death, his burial, and resurrection, to consider what he did for us, and to come together as a body, as believers, as we will tonight in the evening service, and we reflect on what he's done for us and who we are, who he's made us to be, and the fact that he is coming again for us. Those are things we're supposed to think about often, and we will celebrate it tonight. Now as we concluded a couple weeks ago, I stopped around verse 26. So 1 Corinthians chapter 11, let's pick up at verse 27. Wherefore, whosoever shall eat this bread and drink this cup of the Lord unworthily shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord." Now we mentioned a couple weeks ago, the unworthily there, what they had been doing, their church had a practice of partaking in what they call the love feast. It was a potluck meal of sorts. And there were some people who were showing preference for some over others. They would meet at their own secret times, and they would have a really good potluck early. Then when the others came, they got the leftovers. They were eating the pop tarts, and they were eating the mini-wheats. But the other people had been eating crab legs. They had had a great time already. They were stuffed. They were not even thinking about the Lord anymore. They had such a good time of fellowship and food. But there's other people who were coming who were actually starving. And this inconsistency in the church, they brought that reproach into the Lord's table. An ordinance given by God to the church to think about the free grace of the gospel we have received. And it was tainting, it was hindering what God wanted to do in the life of the church through that practice. And so when it says unworthily, they were carelessly practicing the Lord's table, not thinking about others. He says, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. Let me just say it simply. They sinned. The way that they came to approach their ministry was sinful. Can we ever seek to do something for the Lord and do it in a way that dishonors him? Sure. Sure. Verse 28, he says, but let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread and drink of that cup, for he that eateth and drinketh unworthily eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. Verse 30, for this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. Verse 31, for if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world. Wherefore, my brethren, verse 33, when ye come together to eat, tarry one for another. And if any man hunger, let him eat at home, that ye come not together unto condemnation. And the rest will I set in order when I come. Let's bow for a moment in prayer. Father, help us as we look at this passage of scripture to see the value of the gospel. The God who gave us his grace by sending his son Jesus so that we could be saved. And I thank you that the gospel extends to our brothers and sisters in Christ, but also to all who will call upon him in faith. Help us to value you and value your gospel. In the Lord's table, in Jesus' name, amen. The title is this morning, Taking the Lord's Table in Vain. The gospel is not to be meddled with. It's not to be mismanaged. It's not to be marginalized. Like the beaver, sometimes when we're seeking to preserve ourselves, we can cause others to suffer. Others will pay because of your selfishness. What are the consequences of a careless attitude towards the Lord's table? What happens when we are stingy with the gospel? When we value our own treasures? Maybe we value the opinions of others. It's like we have a little safety deposit box, and in that safety deposit box, we keep the opinions of others, the compliments you're given, maybe even the praises you get for serving the Lord, and we treasure those up. We begin to think so highly of ourselves because of this little treasure box that we hold, not thinking the least about the fact that that treasure box is not eternal. We're living for something that is wrapped in this world. The Corinthian church had some trials. They were going through some troubles because of some choices that they had made. God jealously guards the gospel ministry. He jealously guards it. And even the picture of the gospel that he gives in the Lord's table is something that God jealously protects. So in order for us to not take the Lord's table in vain, we need to not just think of ourselves and treasuring up what we think is valuable in the world. We need to understand what God cares about, what he is concerned about, what he is interested about in the world today. And so we wouldn't want to come together, we wouldn't want to gather with shame, would we? He talks about those in verse 27. He says, shall be guilty. We don't want to come, guilty before God, do we? We don't want to come before the Lord to gather as believers with punishment on us, would we? Because there's a severe punishment that he mentions here, not only physical illness, but even death. We wouldn't want to gather that way, would we? And we would not want to gather with compromise. We wouldn't want in any way for our testimony to hinder the transmission of the gospel to a lost community. We don't want that to happen. And so we must take very seriously the Lord's table. The Corinthians had struggled, hadn't they, with division that was caused by immaturity. That's what we're told in chapter three, first couple of verses there. They were divided. And that division was because they were spiritually immature. They should have been taking in some meat, but all they could handle was milk. They were immature. They needed to grow. Well, how did that maturity show up? By the selfishness, the party spirit, the divisions and the contentions with one another inside their fellowship, inside their church. Now, they didn't meet in a church building like ours, but there was contention between the believers. What did that reveal about them? The divisions that they had, the immaturity. I think they were questioning the authority of Scripture. They were, in fact, disobeying what God had told them to do. They were trivializing the mission of the church, what God has called all of us to do. They weren't thinking about the lost. They weren't thinking about getting the gospel to those who have not heard. They were thinking about themselves and their status with one another, who looked better and who, who align themselves with the more important preacher, that was their attitude, may scandalize the holy nature of God, they themselves because of their behavior We're giving a caricatured picture of God. We can do the same thing. You know what a caricature is? It exaggerates certain features. If you were to draw my caricature, you'd have this big, giant, round face, you know, with a couple of ears sticking out this way, and a couple of dots in the middle. You would accentuate what is already a little bit accentuated, you'd accentuate it a lot. What happens when we caricaturize God? We mock Him. Because God is perfect in every way. And when we have a focus on one particular area or one particular slightly off doctrine, what happens is we create before a watching world a caricature of God. Sometimes we say, well, why does the world mock God? Sometimes, sometimes it's our fault because we have lost sight of the whole picture that the scriptures give of a holy, just, faithful, loving, and gracious God. We skip some of it. So the Apostle Paul was very concerned for the Church of Corinth. He was concerned not only for their own well-being and their future, he was very concerned with their testimony to the Corinthian community, to the trade ports, the trade ports that surrounded the city. People were coming and going every day, and that message, as people came to faith in Christ, would go, as it often did in the New Testament era. As people came and came in contact with Christians, they would be saved and they would be sent. And God would disseminate the message of the gospel throughout the known world. But what happens, what happens if the beavers make a dam? What happens when the gospel stream is blocked up because of a carnal church? Who's getting the gospel? There's consequences for selfishness and service. So of the handful of things that you and I are entrusted by God with as a local church, which one of them can be dispensed with? Which one can we say is really not that important? Is it giving the gospel? Well, of course we wouldn't say, no, we must give the gospel. We must let people know that there is hope in Jesus Christ. Salvation comes by faith. Repentance of sin. God's grace is available for all who come. whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." We can't get rid of giving the gospel. What about godly living and Christian growth? Could we get rid of that? Absolutely not. No way. God has saved us to make us into the image of His Son. The Lord Jesus Christ, godly living is essential. There's a work of the Spirit of God in us. There's choices that we make day by day to obey the Spirit, to obey the Word, to live godly in an ungodly world. We can't get rid of that. What about Christian growth? No, we're to grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord. We can't get rid of that. What about gathering for worship, the preaching of the Word and prayer? Can we get rid of those things? Well, absolutely not. The God who saved us loves us, and He has called us to love Him. And so we love Him. We worship Him in song. We worship Him in our giving. We worship Him in our obedience to the Word of God. We worship Him as we gather together as a church and pray and seek the face of God, not only for the needs of our world, but the needs of our own church and our own families. God has commanded us to. So we can't get rid of giving the gospel or godly living, gathering together. What about the exercising of spiritual gifts? That's coming next week, but can we get rid of that? Absolutely not. The Holy Spirit of God indwells us. We are his temple. We're the vessel, but he has gifted us to serve him in the world. Praise God. We don't want to get rid of that. What about the careful observation of the ordinances? Baptism and the Lord's table, can we get rid of those? No, no, every one of these things, these handful of things we've mentioned that are entrusted to us by God, they're things that are enumerated in scripture, they're spelled out for us. These are things that are enabled by the cross of Christ. He died for us to be saved, but also for us to live out his will in the church, in the context of the local church. But he's also empowered each of these things by his Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit of God empowers us to do these things, including the observation of the Lord's table. They're expected of the church. The apostle underscores the specialness of the Lord's table in all of 1 Corinthians chapter 11, really picking up at verse 23, then through verse 34. He talks about the seriousness of the Lord's table. It's something we're gonna take very seriously. And the selfless nature of the Lord's table. We're not coming to stuff our face, we're coming to serve the Lord. That's the attitude that's presented. So we're selfless at the Lord's table and we're selfless with the gospel of Jesus Christ. I mentioned a couple weeks ago, the table, the Lord's table is something that's simple. There's two items. Just the bread and the juice. Very simple. It's a symbol. That bread and juice are a picture of the body and the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. It's a symbol. And so, it's lastly significant. It concerns Christ and his church. And we're not to be careless with Christ. We're not to be thoughtless of this church. They're valuable to God. So, do we take the Lord's table in vain or in faith? Now the warnings that are given to us are shocking, aren't they? Verse 30, many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. Does that mean that every time a person is physically ill, that they are in sin? Let's all say it, no, okay? In the last two months, probably more people percentage-wise in our church have been sick than any other time in the last 12 months, right? There have been a lot of us who have gone through some illnesses. Were those illnesses caused by sin? Not necessarily. But he does tell us that there may be those who do experience that. It's not for us to be like Job's friends and to point our finger and give the accusation every time somebody blows their nose, are you in sin? You hear a cough across the street. wicked you know no no no no but we are to take it so seriously that God we understand that God is jealously going to guard his gospel and his gospel imagery the Lord's table so we're to take it very seriously do I take the Lord's table in vain or in faith. So number one this morning, let me give you two simple points. Number one, study yourself for the Lord's table. Study yourself for the Lord's table. The idea here, when he says that we are to examine ourselves, it's really a picture of studying yourself, of looking at something and making discernments. This here and this here and this is what it means. There. I mean, if we had a group of teenagers and after the service today we all went over to McDonald's and I got, you know, a triple extra large order of french fries and I'd say 15 each. I mean, some of you teenage boys would be counting and making sure that nobody had more than you, right? Yeah. Discerning. The idea is that we approach the Lord's table, we're to come with a discerning mind, aware, alert. It's not something to do thoughtlessly. But it's right for us to study ourselves. Why? To not be chastened. Whom the Lord loves, he chastens. And if we're thoughtless about the gospel, if we're thoughtless about this thing that God has commanded for the church, God takes it very seriously. And in love, in love, if we're being selfish with the Lord's table, to serve ourselves rather than to serve Christ and his church, God will deal with that. We study ourselves to not be chastened. Selfishness is sinfulness, right? It's to elevate yourself. You could even say to elevate yourself above God. We wouldn't want to do that. But we're also to be a contrast. Look at verse 31, he says, for if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. Same word discerning in verse 29 is the same as the word judged in verse 31. And it's this idea of making clear. I'm just gonna use the word study. If we would study ourselves, we should not be judged. Be judged by who? This judgment is not talking about an eternal judgment. It's not talking about damnation. It's talking about a temporary judgment or a chastisement from God, a punishment. God sometimes in love acts for you and I to bring Him glory. Sometimes God lovingly allows us to experience His hand of punishment to change us, to make us more like His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. God always punishes in love. And he says in verse 32, but when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord. That's that loving chastisement. It's done in love for change. But notice the second half of the verse, that we should not be condemned with the world. And it almost sounds like, it seems like he's saying that we would lose salvation. Not the case. He's saying that you would be a contrast to those who are going to die and be judged at the great white throne judgment and suffer eternally because they did not repent, they did not believe on Christ, they were not saved. He says don't put yourself in a position where you look just like the people who are rejecting the gospel. So it's important for us to study ourselves because it's serious. It's serious to God. It should be serious to us. Secondly, number one, we study yourself for the Lord's table. Number two, you celebrate salvation together. The word together is given throughout this passage, and we see it in verse 17, ye come together. Verse 18, ye come together. Verse 20, ye come together. We see it again in verse 33. Wherefore, my brethren, when ye come together to eat, number one, we celebrate salvation together. The Lord's table is an ordinance entrusted to the entire church. So if you're in the hospital and you're sick and you're not sure you're going to make it and you say, Pastor, before I go, I'd like to observe the Lord's table. What would you do, Pastor Knight? Now, I'm not gonna say that anybody else has to do it my way. I think according to this passage, the entire church can go up to that hospital floor. If we need to go down to the waiting room and meet together, but the ordinance is entrusted to the entire church. You come together. It's something that we do to remember Christ, but we also remember what he's done for all of us, the unity that we have in Jesus Christ. So the gathering is necessary. Verse 34, he says, and if any man hunger, let him eat at home. So gathering is necessary, but kindness is essential. Man, I'm starving. I can't wait for the Lord's table tonight. Taking all the bread. According to their custom, they were receiving, and again, it's not forbidden. We could do it here if the church would so choose, but we could have a love feast. We could have a dinner together, but there were those, again, who were coming, and they weren't coming to think about honoring the Lord or gathering together with each other. They were looking out for themselves. They've got the four plates of the potluck and two pieces of pie tucked away for a little bit later. All right, all right, you know? When I was single, I would go to old country buffets just before I got married because I didn't really know how to cook anything. And if I was gonna get vegetables, there was a salad bar and there was vegetables. And for whatever it was back then, whatever, $6 for lunch, I would go and I would get my vegetables so I could eat pizza for supper at home in the microwave. I mean, there's times when we need food. I mentioned earlier that sometimes meals were a means of ministry. But you know, meals can also become a source of distraction from the most important thing. I'm not a fan of people leaving services to get ready for the next church dinner. I'm like, no, we're here to be here. If we have to wait five more minutes to set things out, I'm okay with that. Why? Because the work of the ministry isn't just doing services. The church is a group of called out people to gather together. But the most important thing happening on this property today is us gathering together around the word of God, and the boys and girls gathering together, and the nursery workers showing the love of Christ to little ones who can't quite understand. But we gather, we're here. And so during COVID, you say, well, I just got used to watching my services online. I'm grateful, grateful for the media ministry of our church. But you at home watching a video isn't necessarily church. This is church. It's us gathered together as called out ones to worship and to serve Jesus Christ. Again, I've been sick before and I've watched the services. I'm so grateful for it. I know there are those who are homebound and can't get out. And I'm grateful that they can figure out the technology to find our service. Praise God, I'm glad that you're watching today. But let me just say, let's not make any mistake about it. Listening to your sermon audio message on Thursday is not gonna replace last Sunday that you weren't here. We're to gather together, it's essential. It's a picture of what God wants to do in the world through us. We need the encouragement, we need the fellowship, but God deserves the worship. We're not really here for us anyway. We're gathered together for him. What does God think of the church? He loved it and died for it. And so what he says about the church, and what he has asked us to do as a church, boy, we better take it very seriously. Because it's not about us, it's about him. You say, I'm not comfortable in this church, and the chairs aren't as comfortable as I'd like, or they lean back too far, or they lean forward too far, or whatever, I don't like the spacing, and pastor's preaching every week to an empty aisle in the middle of the church. Well, oh well. That's not the most important thing. The most important thing is that we come together, we open the word of God, we humble ourselves before the Lord, we recognize the offer of His grace, we celebrate the fact that not a one of us could have saved ourselves. We're not here to be saved, we're here because we're saved. And we're here to help other people come to know Christ and be saved. So why is the Lord's Table so serious? It's commanded for the church, verse 24, He says, take ye, this is my body which is broken for you. This do ye in remembrance of me. And it's built into that word, this do. This do, it's a continuous. It's something on a regular basis ought to be practiced by the ministry of the local church. Could be every week, could be every year, could be once a month as we do. but it's something to continue to be done through the ministry of the local church. It's commanded by Christ for us as the church. What is the church? Is it the building? Does the building have commands given to it? No, we are the church. We're the assembly, we're the congregation. We are the bride of Christ, amen? So it's commanded for the church, but it's also a picture of Christ and his cross. Let's not forget, it's not just a tradition. Observing the Lord's table is for us to consider the great sacrifice made for us of Jesus giving his body to be yielded, hands scarred, side pierced, crown pressed, the body of the Lord Jesus Christ given for us. His blood given for us. So as we think about it, as we think about Christ, we think about his cross, Verse 27 says, wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread and drink this cup of the Lord unworthily shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. We don't take that lightly, right? The Lord's table is a serious occasion. Do you know what it also does? It preaches the gospel. Verse 26 tells us, as often as you eat this bread, drink this cup, you do show the Lord's death till he come. The word show there is the idea of it's proclaiming, it's preaching. As you observe the Lord's table, you are preaching the gospel. by your participation. What's the difference between termites and woodpeckers? One makes a lot of noise, one does a lot more damage. Sometimes, sometimes we're very concerned about the woodpeckers who cry out against the church and they grab the microphone and step before the news media and they decry what Christians are doing in the world. We get upset about the woodpeckers, but we ought to be concerned about the termites who eat the church from the inside out. The Apostle Paul was looking at the church at Corinth, and there was damage coming from the inside out, and it needed to be addressed. The Lord's table for us is a privilege to picture, and it's a preparation for heaven. One day forever we will gather together and worship with the Lord Jesus Christ because of the cross. So we submit to each other. We submit to God as we participate in the Lord's table. And it's a right thing. So how do I study myself? How do I examine my heart at the Lord's table? Ask yourself, what sin am I trivializing? What sin am I thinking so little of that it doesn't really need to be brought to God's attention? What sin are you excusing? Number two, what command are you minimizing? Is there a command of scripture that you would say, well, it's really, it's no big deal? What relationship are you resisting? Is there a brother or sister in Christ that you keep at arm's length? Tonight's service, I'll be preaching on the subject of fixing, fixing broken relationships. I just wanna be a help to you. Maybe you've wondered before, how can I mend this broken relationship? We're gonna study the word of God tonight. Hope you'll be back for the Lord's table and for that message. But are there people who you are resisting? You think little of them. Maybe you say, maybe you've said it out loud or maybe you've said it in your heart, why do they have to be at my church? I wish they would go somewhere else. Maybe you've said that before. Who are you resisting? I think as we observe the Lord's table in the context of this passage, yes, examine your heart before the Lord. Is there any unconfessed sin? Is there any patterns of life that I need to address before the Lord? But especially this, as it relates to our relationship as a body of Christ, is there anyone who I'm showing prejudice towards? Is there anybody who I'm giving favor towards while pushing away others? That's the idea here. I'm seeking me, I'm building up a dam of my own protection, my own self-serving, while other people are suffering. What happens when beavers build dams? Well, it's convenient for them. They can swim in that deep water and they can get the fish, but what happens to the fish in the nearby lake or stream, the pond? Well, a couple of problems come, doesn't it? Flooding, right? It floods the area, submerges the roots of the trees, and so if you've ever been to a lake or a pond that once was beautiful and lush with green trees, and after a few years, maybe even after a season, once the beaver has built the dam, all of a sudden all you see is sticks. There's no green leaves. The branches are falling off and the trees are falling over. The, Film has formed, maybe E. coli or something like that is brewing in it, but it gets nasty. It kills its surroundings. You say, well, the beaver has been well provided for. Meanwhile, the farmer's fields have turned into swamps. Meanwhile, the other animals in the area suffer. Those fish that like the cool, deep water now are in this non-moving, warm, Scum pond, ugh. Well, the beavers are happy, and so it is with the church. Many a Christian who has sought to please themselves, to serve themselves, hey, I'm happy, and yet the church is dying. Everyone around them has been affected because of their self-serving, their bitterness of heart, because they're unwilling to make things right. You say, well, why does God deal so seriously, so drastically? with this because he jealously guards his gospel and his gospel testimony. And if we gather together as God's people, thoughtless of what he's done for us, the great free gift of his grace, we hold for ourselves. We cling to it for us. We don't want to show it to others, that same kindness God showed to us. We don't want to give the good news of salvation to others either. And God said, this is serious. So we must examine ourselves. Is your behavior inconsistent with the generous nature of God's gifts? While we're speaking about the Lord's table, we could certainly make an application to all of ministry as we gather together to serve God as a church, as we gather together for services. If it's done in a selfish manner for yourself, for your own promotion or your own comfort, if you're just, what's happening is you're doing the same thing. You're building up a dam around you and it's gonna hinder the entire work. How are we called to serve God? together, humbly, in honor of the gospel of Jesus Christ that saves and changes us, right? So we're to examine, am I guilty? Am I being punished? Am I being a poor testimony of the gospel? The gathering. I mean, who's missing? The Lord's table is just a, it's a convenient thing for us to not only examine our own hearts, but to examine our church. Look around, who's not here? Who's not had the Lord's table with us in two months or six months or a year? Maybe it means a phone call or maybe it means a text or maybe it means a visit and say, you know, we gather and it's important for you to gather with God's people because we're not just gathering for us, we're gathering for God. Make a phone call. Who's missing? Let me also ask, it's a good time for us as a church to evaluate and say, who's not here yet? Who is it that we're praying for? Week by week on Wednesday nights, we're praying for souls to be saved. And many of your relatives and your loved ones' names are there, and we're praying for them weekly. Oh, how wonderful it will be when some of those names, we call it the open eyes list, how wonderful it will be when some of them, the open eyes list, are coming and they've been saved and they've been baptized and they're gathering together, receiving the Lord's table together. What a picture of what heaven will be. Who's not here yet? Maybe people we know, but maybe those you haven't met yet. And to think that you could have the influence of eternity. You could help. spread God's message so a soul can be saved. Their heavenly future, but they get to be a part of church. You ever known somebody and you say, boy, they're going through so many hard times. Wouldn't their life be so much better if they had a group of people like I have at our church who care and love and pray for and encourage me? People who are missing out on church are missing out on God's work through the church. And so our heart ought not to be, well, This is about us. It's not about them. It's not to be that way. It's about who does God want to bring in. Jesus prayed for those who would come to faith in John 17. We ought to pray for them too. We ought to look for them. We ought to be ready to share the gospel, witness to them. Christ's cross is to be celebrated together. He enumerates, enables, and he empowers, and he expects this of us. Christ's grace is offered to all. The convicting question that I'm left with as I read this passage is this, are there choices that I am making, are there choices that you are making that are limiting the gracious gift of the gospel to others, hindering other Christians from experiencing kindness and love and joy and peace that comes by way of the gospel through our lives? Am I limiting what God wants to do? Am I limiting the spread of the gospel message? Has my selfishness caused flooding, swamping, and stagnating? Or is it brought about life? Have I let the water of the gospel flow freely through us as a church? Some suggest that the beaver is always right. Some people believe a self-willed Christian is always right. But they're just not. The choices they make hinder all of us, and God wants to grow us. Verse 31, I think, is the most important verse in this passage. You may not agree with me, but read it with me. It says, for if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. God takes very seriously his glory. He takes very seriously his gospel. And we, who are his children, need to take very seriously the way we interact and treat one another. You say, well, what does it really matter? It matters. It matters to everything that God wants to do in the world. And if we're building up dams of broken relationships, of an angry spirit, of unforgiveness, if we've got our prejudices and our selfishness and we've got our own little cliques, guess what? The gospel can't flow freely through us anymore. Oh, God forbid it. God forbid it that we should stop what he wants to do in the world because of our pride and selfishness and self-interest. Father, help us. to let your gospel flow freely through us. Help us to celebrate it often as the Lord's people. Help us not to make excuse for not gathering together when our church received the Lord's table. Help us to make it a priority. so we can celebrate what you have done for us, so that we can study ourselves and search our hearts before you to make sure there's not anything that's building a dam in our lives to keep you from doing what you want to do in our lives and through our church. In Jesus' name, amen.