Set Free

Well, let me add my good morning. My name is Sam. If I haven't had the chance to meet you yet,

hopefully I will. As Jimmy has already expressed, we have just finished four weeks of soaking in

our vision as a church and trying to get clear on where it is that God is leading us. And I get the

joy of a little gap, a little breath for us before we launch all into the craziness and excitement

that is Christmas. And so we're going to soak in Romans 8 for two weeks. And as I've started

preparing this week, I kind of wish that we were soaking in Romans 8 for about 10 weeks,

because there is a lot in there that is just incredibly life-giving. But we've got two,

so we're going to try and make the most of it. So let me pray and ask that God would

say the things that he needs to say so that we can get the life that he wants to put into us today.

Father God, we thank you for gathering us. We thank you for your word. We thank you for the

gift that we can open it, confident that we are loved by you because of Jesus. Please give us the

ability to focus our hearts and minds now and to hear what it is you want to say. Amen.

Now, in a room this size, I can fairly confidently say that there would be some people in this room

who would identify as Christians. So you love Jesus. He's important to you. He's a big part of

the way you make decisions about your life. He's fairly central. It's not a question for you. You're

in. That's who you are. There would also be some people in this room who aren't sure where they

stand. It could be that you kind of want to be in, but you're not really sure if you're in,

or maybe you're not sure whether or not to take that final step to say, okay, I want to be a

Christian. I want to make that part of who I am. And then as well as those two groups,

there would be in a room this size some people who aren't Christians, who are confident that

they're not Christians, who might even be confident that they don't want to be Christians. They don't

want to follow Jesus. But there is something that all three groups would have in common.

And that is the awkwardness around the gap between the things that Christians say

and the lives that Christians live. If you're a Christian, it could be that that is a source of

doubt for you. It could be your own gap between this is what I know Jesus says, and this is what

I did this week, or the way I treated my mother, or the way I treated my boss, or the way I responded

to the person who overtook me in traffic. You know the gap. And for you, if you're a Christian,

it could be that that is a gap that makes you ask questions about just how real your faith in Jesus

really is. If you're not sure if you're a Christian, this doubt, this guilt could be why you're not

sure. You might have this nagging question of could God actually love someone like me when I'm so far

away from the obvious and explicit standard that he gives. If you don't want to be a Christian,

it could be because of all those Christian hypocrites who say one thing and don't deliver. Or maybe it's

just too intimidating. Jesus sounds great, but to actually sign up to try and live what looks like

an impossible standard. Gandhi expressed it when he used these words. He said,

I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.

Said from the outside, but it's not just outsiders throwing stones. Christian musician Brennan Manning

said, the greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians who acknowledge Jesus

with their lips and walk out the door and deny him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world

simply finds unbelievable. If you've been a Christian for more than a few minutes, you know this tension.

You know this struggle. It's not just the expectations that others have placed on you. It's your own

expectations of what your life as a Christian would be like. You know it doesn't always line up.

You know you fail. You know you make mistakes. You know that driving pressure of guilt to try harder,

to serve more, to give more, to go to church more, that guilt that weighs us down and is sometimes even

used as a motivator. I remember when I was growing up as a teenager, that was when I first started really

engaging what Jesus was about. I would hear testimonies, so stories of how people had placed

their trust in Jesus. And almost without exception, they could be summarised as,

before I met Jesus I was bad, I met Jesus and now I'm good. Now I don't think it was malicious,

but I would hear these stories time after time after time. And I mean, even apart from the pressure

to have to be good, to measure up to this picture that was being painted,

I was feeling pressure to go and develop a drug habit so that I had a decent bad as contrast to

my good for afterwards. Like I thought my testimony is not legit unless there's some, you know, real

light and shade in there. I've got to go and invest some time in my bad so that my good looks better,

or maybe so that it lowers the bar of good. It can drag the whole thing this way and then maybe the

pressure won't be so crushing. It seemed like it then as a teenager, and to be honest with you,

sometimes it seems like it now. The thing that's apparently supposed to change when you become

a Christian is your behaviour. That's supposed to be the obvious shift. Christians have a worldwide

reputation for being hypocrites. And if we're honest, it's probably a fair criticism.

But what does God say to the one who's unsure? What does God say to the one who is crushed by guilt

and struggling? What does God say to the one who's pointing the finger at the Christian and calling

them a hypocrite? Into the pressure to be good enough, into the fear of failure, and into the hurt

and anger that comes from being hurt and mistreated by those who claim to follow Jesus,

God says this. Romans 8 verse 1.

Romans 8:1

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. See, what changes when someone

becomes a Christian, first and foremost, is not behaviour. It's verdict. You see, the line that's

drawn when somebody starts following Jesus is not good to bad. It's, they are declared innocent.

Condemnation is the thing that's removed. Christians are set free.

But set free from what?

Because the hypocrite charge comes because sometimes we say, and sometimes people hear,

that what we've been set free from is the bad that we used to be. But it can't be that.

It can't be that we've been set free from being bad because otherwise none of us can stay.

That's not our experience. But even more than that, if we look back just a few verses into Romans chapter 7,

Romans 7 · chapter mention

which Rach read out for us when we were singing before, we've got the apostle Paul giving his testimony.

And it's not a good, bad testimony. I mean, remember, this guy is possibly the greatest missionary

the world has ever known, possibly the greatest church planter and pastor of all time.

And listen to his frustration.

That his heart's desire to obey God just doesn't line up with his day-to-day actions.

And this is even for a guy that most of us would have looked up to when it comes to his godliness.

Listen to his own words. He says, verse 15 of chapter 7,

I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do, I do not do. But what I hate, I do.

And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good.

As it is, it's no longer I myself who do it, but it's sin living in me.

For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature.

For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.

For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do, this I keep on doing.

Now, if I do what I do not want to do, it's no longer I who do it, but it's sin living in me that does it.

So I find this law at work.

Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me.

For in my inner being, I delight in God's law.

But I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind, making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me.

What a wretched man I am.

Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?

You can feel the burden that he is carrying.

In his inner being, in his deepest desire, he wants to live for God.

He wants to honour God with his actions, but he looks at his day.

He looks at the things he's done and thought and said, and it's just not the same.

Remember, this is a man who encountered Jesus dramatically.

He met Jesus in a blinding light with an audible voice.

There's no question for him about whether or not Jesus is real.

His desire is legitimate.

But day to day, his life is one of frustration and struggle, and he longs for rescue.

But he finds it.

Verse 25,

In Jesus, there is deliverance.

There is freedom.

But that can't mean that he will no longer do these things that are frustrating him.

Because having just thanked God for this freedom that he's found in Jesus,

the very next thing he says, this is the verse before we get to chapter 8,

the very next thing he says in verse 25, he says,

Thanks be to God who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Having been rescued,

so then I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law,

but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.

Having been rescued, there is still a battle going on for Paul daily.

His desire and his actions still do not meet up in the way that he wants them to.

He still lives the life in this tension of guilt and failure.

Even though he wants to do what is right,

his natural inclination is to go back to the way he used to live without Jesus,

to live for himself.

And if you're a Christian,

you know this battle.

It doesn't take a lot of self-reflection

to recognize that we are not what we should be,

not even what we want to be.

You know the crushing guilt of failure,

especially in light of all that God has done for us in Jesus.

But you need to listen again to Romans 8.

Therefore, there is now no condemnation

for those who are in Christ Jesus,

because through Christ Jesus,

the law of the Spirit who gives life

has set you free from the law of sin and death.

For what the law was powerless to do,

because it was weakened by the flesh,

God did by sending his own Son

in the likeness of sinful flesh

to be a sin offering.

And so he condemned sin in the flesh

in order that the righteous requirement of the law

might be fully met in us,

who do not live according to the flesh,

but according to the Spirit.

You have been set free from condemnation

if you are a Christian.

There is no fear of retribution.

There is no worrying that there will be

some sort of payment you have to make.

No penalty. Why?

Because it says Jesus has taken your condemnation.

He has taken your penalty and you are free.

That's what you're free from.

You are free from sitting there at the end of a day

where you have had a fight with someone,

where you know you have dishonored God,

and feeling like somehow God is going to punish you

for that one.

Because it says there is no condemnation.

It's gone. It's done.

It's dealt with. It's exhausted.

God sent Jesus in the likeness of sinful flesh.

That's a really important phrase.

It's telling us that Jesus was flesh.

He was human.

But the like bit is the sinful.

He was human, but he wasn't sinful like us.

Which means he was the sufficient substitute.

God sent someone like us

so that he could take our place.

So that instead of sitting there covered in guilt,

we can actually hand those things over to Jesus.

That's what's going on in the cross.

This is what it means to be a Christian.

This is the measure of whether or not

you are legitimately in.

This is the thing you've got to choose on

if you're unsure

whether or not you're going to follow Jesus.

When you become a Christian,

Jesus takes your condemnation

and sets you free.

What changes is not your behavior.

What changes is your verdict.

What changes is what God sees

when he looks at you.

You are no longer somebody

deserving of condemnation.

That possibility is gone.

What changes is the way that God sees you.

You are set free from guilt

and fear and shame forever.

What makes a Christian a Christian

is the freedom from condemnation.

Freedom from punishment.

But the fact is

it's even more than a verdict change.

It's more than just going from guilty to not guilty.

It's an identity shift as well.

It's not like, you know,

the hammer's over your head

and God just takes it away.

It's more than that.

He does at least that.

But then there is an identity shift.

Condemnation is removed

but then it's replaced with something.

Fear is removed

but it's replaced with something.

Instead of punishment

God gives us his spirit.

God gives us his life-giving power

to strengthen us,

to lead us,

to comfort us.

And then he says in verse 14

those who have the spirit,

those who are led by the spirit

are children of God.

You're not just no longer the naughty child.

You're now his child.

You're now adopted into the family.

Verse 15,

the spirit you receive

does not make you slaves

so that you live in fear again.

It's not exchanging one fear

for another fear.

Rather,

the spirit you receive

brought about your adoption

to sonship

and by him we cry,

Abba, Father.

The spirit himself

testifies with our spirit

that we are God's children.

Now,

I just want to pause here

for a second

because I think

the whole adoption metaphor

has a different connotation

in our context.

I grew up as one of five kids

and my oldest sister

was adopted in our family.

She was fostered

from when she was three weeks old

so I don't know life

without her as my oldest sister.

She's more part of our family

than I am.

But if I'm honest,

there was the odd occasion

where, you know,

as siblings,

we would give her a bit of stick

about being adopted.

Now, I'm not condoning this.

You know,

I've had to repent of this

at some point

and I'm thankful

that there is no condemnation

for this.

But there was points

where my oldest sister,

Tally,

would, you know,

be a bit emotional

or be a bit dramatic

and we would let her know

that the reason

she was going through

this situation

was because she was adopted.

Just to be clear,

I love my sister.

She's great.

But what it does say

is probably something

that is true

even if it's not spoken of us.

There is a part of us

that kind of looks at adoption

as this concession.

It's not quite the same

as being, you know,

born of the flesh,

being a natural-born child.

That's the way

that we view it

in our modern context.

I mean, reality is in Australia

it's almost impossible

so we barely view it at all

but the way we view it

is we would never say that out loud

but there's just this bit of us

that does a double take.

How do I treat you then

if you're adopted?

How do I refer to you?

Is it my sister

or is it my adopted sister?

Is it my half-sister?

Is it my step-sister?

We think through these qualifiers

to make it different

but in the first century,

adoption was nothing like that.

adoption existed

as a means for people

to choose

the child that they wanted

to carry on their family.

They would choose somebody

who would be the inheritor

of their estate.

They would choose somebody

who they wanted to be the one

that would bear their name

going forward.

It's a privilege.

It almost needs to be escalated

like everybody else needs

a little prefix

to brother and sister

because adopted was chosen.

God adopted us.

That means God chose us.

That means that it's not just

are you not in trouble anymore?

God has chosen you

and drawn you into his family

so that you might inherit from him.

It's verse 17.

We're now heirs of God

and co-heirs with Christ.

Not just condemnation gone.

Condemnation is gone

but now in the place of condemnation

is all the promises of God.

The promises of eternal life.

The promise of forgiveness.

The promise of access.

The promise of eternal love

and fellowship.

The promise of everything good.

God has exhausted condemnation.

He's poured it all out on Jesus

as our sin substitute

and instead we have been drawn

into his family.

And all of that

for a bunch of people

who still make mistakes

who will continue to make mistakes

at least until they die

or Jesus comes back.

Sure one day Christians

will be made perfect

but it won't be this side of heaven.

We're going to talk about that

a little bit more next week.

But until then

what you see is what you get.

Christians are

and will be

imperfect.

So if you're a Christian

you need to hear

and believe these words.

There is now

no condemnation

for those who are in Christ Jesus.

If you're sitting in this room

and you're unsure

whether or not you're in

whether or not you want to be in

you need to hear

that if you follow Jesus

the first thing he will do

is remove the possibility

of condemnation.

He will never let you go.

He will offer you peace

in his unconditional

and irreversible love.

So does that mean

that God doesn't care

what we do?

Does that mean

behaviour is irrelevant?

It's unimportant?

Does that mean

that Christians

should be comfortable

with the title hypocrite?

At least I'm a forgiven hypocrite.

Look back at verse 3.

What the law was powerless to do

because it was weakened

by the flesh

so the law wasn't

wasn't capable

of enabling us

to be good enough for God.

But the problem wasn't the law

it was weakened by the flesh

it was weakened by you and me.

The issue was the way

that we approach the law

as this oppressive force.

But what the law was powerless to do

because it was weakened

by the flesh

God did

by sending his own son

in the likeness of sinful flesh

to be a sin offering

and so he condemned

sin in the flesh.

Here's the key bit.

Verse 4.

Why did he do that?

Why did he take away condemnation?

What was the point?

Was it just so that we could

dance around and go

hey I can't get in trouble?

Verse 4.

In order that

the righteous requirement

of the law

might be fully met

in us

who do not live

according to the flesh

but according to the spirit.

In order that

that's why Jesus died.

That's why God

takes away condemnation.

So that we don't walk

through life

feeling crushed

by expectation

and guilt.

Jesus died in your place

and set you free

so that

you could start

the process of change.

So that with the verdict

already decided

so that with the punishment

possibility gone

with the security

of being a child of God

you could then

begin the process

of growing

in your holiness.

Now I've been struggling

all week to figure out

how to articulate

what I feel

when I say that.

Because it feels

like attention

doesn't it?

Hey there's no condemnation.

Jesus has died

so you can be forgiven

regardless of what you've done

or will do.

And nothing you can do

can undo

what Jesus has done.

But hey by the way

the whole point

was so that you would

start doing some stuff.

So that you would change.

So that you would be

a little bit different.

I mean

isn't that like

an irreconcilable tension?

Doesn't it sound strange

to be completely free

with conditions?

It feels like

an oxymoron.

The best word

that I can give for this

I was going to say

it's kind of

an apparent tension

a perceived tension

but I think what it is

is it's an experienced

tension.

Because we do experience this.

We know that God

has died for us.

We know that forgiveness

is in Him alone

and yet

even knowing that

we experience the guilt

of maybe wandering

too far in one direction

and holding these things apart.

So I'm either forgiven

or I'm guilty

and I need to try harder.

We really struggle

to hold those things together

but Paul

writes them

in this chapter

which is

designed

to make you feel secure

as a follower of Jesus.

Every verse in this chapter

is supposed to feed you

and make you walk out of here

feeling invincible

because God's love for you

cannot be taken.

Because His power

dwells in you

because no failure

no opposition

nothing can stop you

from God's good plan.

And in the middle of that

with a straight face

He says

you need to become

more like Jesus.

He puts a standard in there.

So He doesn't see it

as a tension

and yet we experience it

that way.

And the reason is

I believe

because the issue

isn't with the rules

themselves.

The issue isn't

with the command

to love your enemy

or to love your neighbour

or to honour your parents.

The issue

is that the laws

and the rules

and the standards

which are good

feel oppressive

because we never

ever meet them.

Because we hold them up

as a means

by which we might

somehow please God

or make Him happy

they become something

that has power over us.

which means

we've heard forgiveness

but we haven't understood

what we've been freed from.

That's what it says

at the beginning

of chapter 8

we've been freed

from the power

of the law.

The power of the law

is that it can crush us

with guilt

and oppression.

The power of the law

is that

it can hold us captive

but can't actually

deliver the thing

that we want

to please the God

who made us.

See the reason

this is an experience

tension

is because

we look at the law

as if it still

has power

without understanding

that what Jesus

does on the cross

as well as remove

penalty

as well as

draw us into

His family

is transform

the law

into what it's

always supposed to be

a good gift

from God

to show us

what it looks like

to walk the life

that He designed.

It goes from being

this oppressive

bar that we have

to meet

to being a map

to guide us

through life.

Augustine

articulates it

very helpfully

he says

law was given

that grace

might be sought

grace was given

that law

might be fulfilled

the law

was never

going to deliver

but it drives us

to Jesus

who does

and Jesus

takes us

back to the law

to show us

what it was

always supposed

to do anyway

to lead us

to show us

that there is

blessing

in loving

your enemy

that God

will bless you

as you seek

to obey Him

and do things

the way

that He designed.

Now a life

that lines up

with God's law

is not the means

by which you

become a Christian

it's not even

the measure

of whether or not

your Christian faith

is genuine

but it is

what it looks

like

to live

as somebody

who's been

freed.

That's why

it says

in verse 12

therefore

brothers and

sisters

we have an

obligation

okay we're

free

but brothers

and sisters

we have an

obligation

but it's not

to the flesh

to live

according to it

the flesh

is death

the flesh

delivered

nothing for us

the flesh

is that guilt

and oppression

for if you

live according

to the flesh

you will die

but if by the

spirit

you put to death

the misdeeds

of the body

you will live

the obligation

of the Christian

is to live

free

you can't

accept freedom

from God

and then put

the shackles

back on

that's rejecting

freedom

you can't

hold them

together

the obligation

we have

is to

recognize

that what

Jesus

has done

is released

us

to begin

obeying

those laws

not as

oppression

but as

encouragement

as opportunity

it's no longer

a weight

to be carried

it is a torch

to guide

the way

because the

reality is

before Jesus

there wasn't

even the

possibility

of obedience

that's what

makes the

rules and

laws so

oppressive

verse 7

says

the mind

governed by

the flesh

is hostile

to God

this is the

life before

we know

Jesus

it does not

submit to

God's law

nor can it

do so

those who

are in the

realm of

the flesh

cannot

please

God

without

Jesus

the word

that hangs

over our

life

that summarizes

everything we

do

even the

apparently

good things

is death

we are

incapable of

ever pleasing

our creator

in our own

strength

but having

removed

condemnation

he gives us

his spirit

that we might

know the

blessing of

walking the

path that he

designed for

us

that we

might understand

what he

meant when

Jesus said

I've come

that you

might have

life and

have it to

the full

now the

struggle with

sin is going

to continue

as long as

with this

side of

heaven it's

still going

to be

reality

verse 10

he says

it again

he says

if Christ

is in

you

even though

your body

is subject

to death

because of

sin

that is

it's still

around

you're still

dealing with

the pain

and consequences

of your

own

disobedience

and stupidity

in that

context

the spirit

gives life

because of

righteousness

the war

will continue

to wage

but it's

a battle

that's

already

won

because

verse 11

if the

spirit of

him who

raised

Jesus

from the

dead

is living

in you

he who

raised

Christ

from the

dead

will also

give life

to your

mortal

bodies

because

of his

spirit

who lives

in you

the power

of sin

and failure

its power

to condemn

us

both within

our conscience

and before

God

is nothing

compared

to the

power

of the

Holy

Spirit

that

raised

Jesus

from

the

dead

the

same

Holy

Spirit

that's

now

living

in us

empowering

us

to

progressively

win

the battle

against

sin

it's

not

that you

become

a

Christian

here

and your

holiness

level

is here

and then

you're

going to

be on

a pretty

straight

45 degree

angle

until one

day you

hit

perfection

that'd

be nice

because at

least you

could chart

your progress

you might

have moments

like this

and flatline

you might

win

your struggle

against sin

and then

lose

and then

win

and then

win

and then

lose

and then

lose

and then

win

and then

it's not

a clean

line like

that

but however

the line

goes

the possibility

of condemnation

is gone

the power

of sin

when you

lose

to drag

you deeper

and further

and to

create doubt

is gone

because however

your line

goes

it will

end up

in the

same

place

as

everybody

who

trusts

Jesus

verse 29

says

those God

foreknew

he also

predestined

to be

conformed

to the

image

of his

son

God's

doing

the work

and then

verse 30

those he

predestined

he called

those he

called

he justified

that's the

condemnation

removed

and those

he justified

he glorified

that's heaven

it's

inevitable

because the

condemnation

is gone

the end

point of

your life

is heaven

if you

trust in

Jesus

there is

no tension

between

God's grace

to us

and our

obligation

in this

passage

this chapter

is assuring

us

it's building

our confidence

in what God

has done

so that when

we fail

when we

struggle

there will

be peace

that we

might

continue

and that

peace is

found

in living

by his

spirit

living by

the spirit

is not

perfect

living

but it

is active

living

look at

verse 12

this is where

I want to

finish

therefore

brothers and

sisters

we have

an obligation

but it's

not to the

flesh to

live according

to it

for if you

live according

to the flesh

you will

die

but

this is what

it looks

like

but if

by the

spirit

you put

to death

the misdeeds

of the

body

you will

live

put to

death

the misdeeds

of your

body

that's

fairly

serious

language

you don't

tend to

kill anything

through

being passive

actively

fighting with

and killing

sin in your

life

actively

resisting

the things

that try

and drag

you away

from what

Christ

has done

for you

this is

not competing

with verse 1

no condemnation

and put to

death

sit next

to each

other

how do

we know

the deep

confidence

of being

loved by

God

through

Jesus

death

and

resurrection

how can

that verse

there is

no condemnation

be imprinted

on us

so deeply

that we

might never

forget

that truth

by putting

to death

the misdeeds

of the body

by living

according to

the spirit

and if that's

the key

what does

that look

like

for you

how do

you do

it

how do

you kill

sin

verse 2

through

Christ

Jesus

the law

of the

spirit

who gives

life

has set

you free

from the

law of

sin

and death

for what

the law

was powerless

to do

because it

was weakened

by the

flesh

God

did

by sending

his own

son

in the

likeness

of sinful

flesh

to be a

sin

offering

and so

he condemned

sin

in the

flesh

Jesus

is the

one

who

kills

sin

it's not

something

you have

to do

he empties

of it

of its

power

he condemns

it

he puts

it on

the cross

and leaves

it behind

in the

grave

we must

stop

trying to

do this

on our

own

the

greatest

source

of guilt

for the

Christian

the greatest

source

of

discouragement

for somebody

who's trying

to follow

Jesus

is trying

to do

what God

doesn't ask

you to

do

if you

want to

kill

your

sin

if you

want to

put it

to death

if you

want to

stop

being

controlled

by it

then hand

it over

to Jesus

because he

condemns it

in the

cross

he defeats

it

he destroys

it

confess it

to him

specifically

explicitly

don't hold

on to it

don't

don't try

and improve

a little

bit

before you

lay it

bare

before him

don't be

like oh

hey God

I was being

really greedy

with my

money a few

months ago

I'm in a

slightly better

place

please forgive

me for that

greed

before

you don't

mean it

you mean

look at how

well I did

God

you're trying

to kill

it yourself

don't hold

on to it

hand it

over

confess it

to him

to the

one place

where it

can be

killed

the cross

of your

saviour

Jesus

because as

a child

of God

no matter

how many

times you

come to

Jesus

with sin

that you

need to

confess

no matter

how many

times you

fail

you will

always be

welcomed

as a

child

no matter

how many

times you

come to

him

in

inadequacy

and

weakness

there is

no

condemnation

for you

when you

confess

and hand

your sin

and failure

to Jesus

you will

always find

grace

always find

forgiveness

and as

Romans 8

promises

in him

there you

will find

life

and peace

right now

we're going to

share in the

Lord's Supper

together

the whole

point of

this meal

is Romans 8

it's for

us to

remember

that

because

of

Jesus

life

and

death

there's

no

condemnation

for those

who

trust

in

him

it's

an

opportunity

for us

to put

to death

sin

right now

as we

eat

and drink

for us

to

specifically

and explicitly

hand to

God

the things

we know

are not in

line with

those who

claim to

follow him

hand them

over

and watch

him put

them to

death

as these

elements come

around I

want you to

hold on to

them so

that we

can eat

and drink

together

but as

they're

coming

around

prepare

yourself

to hand

over

whatever it

is that

you need

to hand

over

is there a

sin that

you've been

carrying

yourself

maybe a

really deep

one that

you've been

keeping secret

is there a

weight of

guilt that is

driving you

right now that

you need to

let go of

is there a

fear of

judgment

get ready

to hand

them over

to the

one who

loves

unconditionally

and then

once everybody's

got the

elements we're

going to eat

and drink

and celebrate

together

all

how to

forget

what

you

have

to

hold on

and

have

what

you

have

to

give

time

and

give

a

speech

and

give

them

and

if

you

have

them

have

to

invite

them

to

franchise

and

offer

them

is