One Cup, CoronaVirus & Faith - Chris Osburn 3-15-20

As was mentioned earlier, we're thankful for everybody who is

here this evening and I pray that I can say something tonight

with that would help us in. Strengthening our faith and

understand how to move forward with the things going on in the

world right now. I really didn't know what to

entitle my lesson when I was putting it together and kind of

a last minute. Thought was one cup coronavirus

and Faith. It's just kind of what we're

going to touch on tonight. So it's not going to be a

lengthy sermon, but I hope and pray that something can be said

that edifying of the body of Christ a while back.

A few weeks ago. Kylie was talking to one of her

friends regarding services and and possibly coming to worship

service. And one of the questions that

came up to her and she asked me. Was can somebody be allergic to

grape juice? And I'd really never thought

about that and I thought it was a legitimate question.

And so I thought I would look into it and see what we can

learn from that because we all here follow, what's written in

the in the gospel and what Jesus instituted and that's that we

use one cup in one loaf in the Lord's Supper.

And in Matthew 26 verses 26 through 28, it says there.

Matthew 26:26–28

And as they were eating Jesus Took bread blessed and broke it

and gave it to the disciples and said, take eat.

This is my body. Then he took the cup and gave.

Thanks and gave it to them saying drink from it.

All of you for this is my blood of the New Covenant, which is

shed for many for the remission of sins.

You know, dad has a good lesson. I'm thinking maybe a couple

lessons that he has on the cup and the communion and really

good very extensively. Maybe he'll teach on it soon for

us again sometime, but we're not going to dive deep into that

this evening. But specifically, we're going to

get into. Results of panic that we are

dealing with right now and that dramatically change and have

changed the course of worship services in the past. and, We

use one cup, but we know that there are many denominations

that use multiple cups and the introduction of multiple cups in

the Lord's. Supper is really not that old.

When we, when you do some research on it.

During the 1860s scientists in Europe, landed on the idea that

diseases are caused by germs. And these microscopic hostile

agents, enter your body from objects in the environment and

make you sick. So the germ theory was a

breakthrough in those times and in treatment of diseases and it

was clear to all these doctors and scientists that in order to

go after disease. They have to go out her after

germs and during that time of Discovery, a group of Physicians

political activist on entrepreneurs and religious

Crusaders, took it upon themselves to go after germs,

and they called themselves sanitarians.

Well, these sanitarians targeted kissing as a source of patata

possible contamination among other things and, in 1888 in a

medical journal Journal, one doctor went after what he called

The Poisoned chalice. That's what he called his

article in, which he identified as a shared communion cup.

And during those times. It was really easy to scare

people. So soon after that, the idea of

having multiple cups was introduced into the communion

Services. It was reported to have started

around 1890. And some of these sanitarians

actually owned companies that sold individual communion cups.

And they were trying to make a little bit of a profit.

So there was ulterior motivation, 's everything beyond

what was written in the scripture is what they were

going after. Also there was reported reasons

for multiple cups during those times was also racism and whites

would partake first in the communion and then the blocks

and then that kind of grew and progress and led to further

racism where separate cups worth.

Limited. So races would not have to

partake out of the same cup. And dr.

Martin Luther King said, 11:00 a.m.

On Sunday mornings is the most segregated hour in Christian

America. so, All of those implementations all the reasons

why they implemented multiple cups.

Like I said, had no bearing on what is written in the

Scripture. It was all about their sanitary

is their want to be sanitary and racism and I'm sure there were

other factors, but I didn't get too far into that.

So Grape juice are we or can there be an alert allergy to

grape juice and the answer is yes, but it is extremely

uncommon very uncommon. And the cult causes of allergy

to grape juice allergic reactions to grape juice occur.

When our immune system, mistakes grape juice for foreign or

harmful food. And this misidentification of

grape juice makes our immune system produced immunoglobin and

antibody which Reacts with red grapes, the juice.

The next time we drink it, causing the allergy and we may

not be allergic to grape juice, specifically, but doctors and

scientists tend to agree that it is other elements in the grapes

that cause allergic reaction. And that might be triggered by

yeast mold or pesticides on the grapes used in making the grape

juice. Yes.

And that is documented. Dr. Vincent Vincent, astellas

from the University of Valencia in Spain said allergy to grapes

only become apparent in some cases.

When fruit ingestion is combined, with other concurrent

factors such as exercise or alcohol.

So, basically, an allergy to grapes or two grape juice is

only apparent when human modification is present.

And we know that we have unfermented fruit of the vine

that is Untouched by humans or Modified by humans.

I should say that we use here for the communion services.

So how risky is it to share the communion cup with somebody

else? We use and have used over years

as long as I can remember, a silver cup that we drink out of

and looking into. It, silver is known to kill

bacteria. It is used to treat wounds in

The Old Ship captains were known to put.

Silver coins into storage, barrels to keep water fresh,

while I sailed the Seas and hospitals, use silver in

bandages, for treatment on burn victims to combat.

And also to combat superbugs that have come resistant

tradition to traditional antibiotic drugs.

And a new study led by The Faculty of science.

Biological scientists at the University of Calgary helps

enhance understanding of Silver's antibacterial

properties. The research team performed a

chemical genetic screen on a number of about 4,000 mutant

strains of bacterium of E.coli, 4,000 strains of E coli that

they tested this on in which a unique Gene.

In each strain was known to be knocked out or deleted.

So, the use of silver on in Collide, killed e-coli.

Charles Garba an infectious disease specialist at the

University of Arizona. Said this, even though a person

may be ill and put some virus on their the antimicrobial activity

of the silver in these cups. That seems to largely reduce the

risk. In other words were more likely

to contract. Germs on the door handle leading

into the church or shaking, somebody's hand after service,

then on the lip of the community cup. but, Beyond all that

scientific evidence. We as Christians choose

something far greater is at work.

And that is our faith and God. And even if we do not fully

understand how that all works. That's okay.

And that's where our faith kicks in.

So what is our faith? If we do not believe what Jesus

instituted and that God's Providence will take care of us.

How is our faith measured. If we don't believe that job?

We remember, Joe MIT old story of faith in the Old Testament

where God allowed him to be tested by Satan, and job

suffered great losses, terrible grief and bodily distress and

could not understand why God would allow evil people to

prosper, while good people suffer, but finally job accepted

that this is the part of the mystery of God.

Not not to be explained by human logic and in the end job was

okay with that. And Joe 42, after he had gone

through all of these trials and went back and forth with God and

God, finally gave him the, what, for Joe, finally, understood

what was going on in Joe. 42 verses 23.

It says, this is job speaking. I know that you can do

everything and that no purpose of yours can be withheld from

you. You asked who is this?

This who hides counsel without knowledge.

Therefore. I have uttered.

What? I did not understand things too.

Wonderful for me, which I did not know, job came to the

acceptance that things were at work that he did not understand.

And that's our faith to there. Are things that are happening.

That we don't understand how it happens.

But it happens and that's God's Providence working, and we have

to have faith in that. So the risk of infection from

the communicable isn't significant?

Significant enough to change a ritual defined by Jesus and

upheld by Christians for thousands of years.

So that leads me to my next point that we are dealing with

in the world right now. And that is, of course the

spread of coronavirus. And we as Christians need to

understand how and the way that Christ would have us to respond.

If there is to be an epidemic. We have a duty to respond.

The way Christ would have us to respond.

The Christians response to plagues begin with some of Jesus

most famous teachings. Jesus said, do unto others as

you would have them do unto. You love your neighbors as

yourself. Greater love has no man than

this, that he should lay down his life, for his friends, but

put plainly The Christian ethic in a time of plague considers

that, our life must be always regarded as less important than

that of our neighbor. So we have a responsibility to

look out for others who may be sick or elderly or be more

susceptible to any type of disease.

That is our responsibility looking after people.

In first John, three verse 17, it says, but whoever has this

world's goods and sees his brother in need and shuts up his

heart from him. How does the love of God abide

in him? If we have something in our

possession or some skill that we possess that we can help

somebody else in need and we decide to be selfish and hoard

it, and not give it and not help.

God's love is not envious. That's pretty plain.

That's pretty simple stuff. You ask me.

So during actually during the plagues in the Roman Empire,

Christians actually made a name for themselves and historians

have suggested that the terrible and to and taunting plague of

the second century, which might have killed off a quarter of the

Roman Empire actually led to the spread of Christianity as

Christians cared for the sick and offered a spiritual model.

But also, a more famous epidemic is a plague of cyprien name for

a bishop who gave a colorful account of this disease in his

sermons. It was probably a disease

related to Ebola and the plague of cyprien help set off what is

called the crisis of the third Century in the Roman world, but

it did something else, it also triggered an explosive growth of

Christianity during that time. So, For us as Christians, it is

better that we should die serving our neighbor than be

surrounded. In a pile of masks that we never

got to use. so this brings us to one of the more controversial

elements that we see happening today and that is Canceling

church, we do not do that. That is a form of panic that is

happening. And we see religious

organizations that are considering doing that or have

actually implemented in doing that for at least a couple weeks

in order to minimize the outbreak of the virus that is

going on today. And although those intentions

are, maybe logic in our human minds and the intentions may be

well and good with Human understanding canceling, the

Assembly of the body of crisis, in direct contradiction to the

instructions made in scriptures that we are clearly to assemble

on the first day of the week in order to commune teach, pray,

sing praises to God and give of our means.

I also heard today that the governor of our state is also

being considering Banning Assemblies of 250 people or more

and although I don't think we meet that criteria of that

number here. I guess it's a potential where

it could go beyond that and come to smaller groups.

Both think about this. What do we normally and

regularly? Pray for here?

We pray that. If any government issues, any

kind of law that would hinder us from worshipping that we would

worship regardless of the cost. Now, do we believe what we pray

for? We have to believe that we're

going to do that and we will do that.

Now whether we can't do it here at this building or not.

I can guarantee you that. The people in this congregation

will have the strength and the faith to worship regardless of

the cost. Now.

We also not need to forget who was in control, and that is God.

God is in control all the time. The Lord knew what he was doing

when his plan of communion was implemented.

So where's our faith live? When we are susceptible to the

pressures from the world to be sanitary, which we've been

sanitary here. We have gone beyond what we

normally do too. Disinfect surfaces and all that,

but we don't want to compromise the Lord's supper supper by

having multiple cups or by canceling corporate worship

Services altogether. Jesus instituted it.

He meant it, and we follow it now.

Do we believe God or not? Do we have great faith?

That he will carry us through this?

And I believe that we do. Now, does that mean that we are

careless with our life, of course, not.

Absolutely. Not.

We all do, physically will do all that.

We physically Clan can in this life that we are capable of

doing without compromising. The instruction of the word of

God. And at the same time, we pray,

like, God to God, like he's the only one who can fix it.

That's great. Faith.

We work hard as much as we can on our side and we have great

faith in God, that he's going to take care of it on his own.

As Christians, we must act in faith along with caution and

wisdom. We must remember who our true

protector and sustainer of life is.

We should continue living functioning and ministering as

we would on any given day. While being cautious of wise, we

can only trust in the Lord even as this virus reminds us that

humanity is fragile. And in Psalms, The hundred third

chapter verses 15 through 16. It says as for man, his days are

like grass. He flourishes like a flower of

the field before the wind passes over it and it is gone and it's

Place knows it no more. So as Believers, the fragility

of life, does not drive us to despair, rather.

It should drive us nearer to Christ nearer to the one that

entered into a virus infected World nearer to the one that

lived and ministered to the sick, nearer to the one that has

given us an antidote for the gray would greatest virus and

that is the virus of sin. We need to hear Jesus's words

where he said, I am the resurrection of Life.

Whoever believes in me, though. He die, yet shall he?

Live and everyone who lives and Believes In Me, shall never die.

Do you believe this? Let's not miss an opportunity

for us to show the world what faith looks like in this time of

panic. It is our responsibility.

It is a great opportunity for us.

And again, what is our faith? If we do, not trust in God, in

his design in Proverbs 3 and verse 5, through 6.

It says, trust in the Lord, with all your heart and lean not on

your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge Him and He

Shall Direct. Pass.

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