God sets the times

Well, can we turn together in God's Word to the book of Ecclesiastes and chapter 3

to remind ourselves that God sets the times.

But before we go there grand scale, I want to think about Lego sets.

I'll bring it right down. We have boys in our house, so we often have Lego sets in our houses.

I know some of you enjoy, still enjoy Lego. Lego's an amazing thing.

If you haven't seen it since when I was growing up in the 1980s and early 90s, it has moved on considerably.

So you open a box and you're confronted with a whole host of random pieces, lots of new shapes and designs in the Lego world.

And it's amazing for me, anyway, to see how you can go from step one to step however hundred.

You're building it up and you're wondering, how is this block going to add to this car or this castle, whatever it is.

You go, you follow the instructions, you come out with this brilliant model at the end.

There's something wonderful about the imagination and design of engineers.

Think about Lego sets. Think about our lives and our times.

Our lives are full of various times and seasons.

Our stories take in a whole host of people and places and events and circumstances and conversations and joys and sorrows.

And many of those we did not plan.

But still, somehow they lock together and they piece together to make us who we are.

And our stories, as we look around the room today, our stories can and will be hugely different from those around us.

But that doesn't matter because our great point today is that we are not the designers.

We are not in control.

It's God who is the master builder.

It's God who sets the time.

It's God who chooses the pieces.

God who sets the pattern and the plan of our lives.

That our times, individually and collectively, are in God's hands.

And I hope that we'll see how that's really good news.

But it involves us living with an understanding that we have a lack of control.

It forces us to acknowledge that we have limits.

For some of us, we might find that quite comforting, instinctively.

Others of us, we might find that quite challenging, instinctively.

Well, to live with limits can be comfort and is comfort for the people of God if and when we learn to trust God.

Recognizing that with God there are no limits.

Recognizing that God stands beyond time and over time and over our times.

And he has a character that we can trust.

There is comfort there.

Especially if we think about the alternatives.

If the alternative is that I set the agenda for my life and I drive the timetable.

Then very quickly, I am going to become frustrated or perhaps very stressed.

Because things are not working out the way that I hope.

Alternatively, if I think blind chance and coincidence is setting the course of our lives.

That very quickly becomes a recipe for despair and that sense that life is vanity and is meaningless.

But when I come to understand that my times are in God's hands, that's a real source of hope.

If I know the character of God and I have learned that I can trust him.

And that is true whether we're thinking globally.

So we're just coming out of pandemic.

Whether we think of what's happening in the Ukraine.

Or whether we're thinking about the personal situation that we are in right now.

It is comfort and hope for us to appreciate that God sets the times.

So that we might stand in awe of him.

And we might learn to trust him.

That's what we're going to see today.

We need to begin with the problem of our times.

Because that's really what this poem, this really famous poem, is speaking about in the first nine verses.

I've probably said this before.

But when it comes to poetry, I would consider myself to be fairly dense.

I enjoy the language.

I like the sound of poetry.

Generally, I don't get it.

So coming to any poem, I'm having to ask, what is our author trying to say?

Very basic for me, because I've got a basic mind.

Here, to understand what's going on in this poem, we need to set it in its context.

We need to see it as we've been through Ecclesiastes 1 and 2.

And we also need to see the words that follow from verse 10 onwards.

Because our poem, as beautiful as it is, reveals a problem to us.

And it's the prose that follows in verse 10 onwards that begins to offer real comfort to us.

So look at the introduction in verse 1.

The introduction to the poem.

There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the heavens.

And I'm sure we agree with that.

We understand that life has rhythms and seasons, whether we're thinking about the calendar or just the seasons of life.

But the teacher's point, the point of Ecclesiastes, is that God sets those times.

Not you and not me.

Thinking about the subject matter of the poem in verses 2 to 8, what are we dealing with here?

It seems like in these few short lines, our teacher, our poet, is wanting to cover the completeness of human experiences and human emotions.

A few clues to that.

First of all, if we follow the rule of seven.

So in the Bible, seven is the number of completeness.

How many lines are in our poem?

I'll save you counting.

There are 14.

So there are two blocks of seven.

How many times is the word time in our poem?

Time being the key theme.

There's 28 time references.

Four times seven.

Completeness is in view.

And then think with me about the very first line, verse 2.

A time to be born and a time to die.

Doesn't that take in the completeness of our human lives?

All else within the poem fits within those two bookends.

So this is trying to say, here is a summary of the completeness of human experiences and human emotions.

So let's have a look at it.

We're not going to go line by line, but we're going to notice four features of the poem.

First one being that the times of our lives are outside of our control.

Now we've already said that and we're going to see this here.

So again, first line.

A time to be born and a time to die.

We know this.

The day of our birth, we did not decide.

The day we will die, we do not decide.

And the ageing that happens in between, we do not control.

The second line takes us in the same direction.

A time to plant and a time to uproot.

There are some gardeners in the room.

I am not one of them.

But to think very basically about planting and pruning and harvesting, we know that there are right times to plant.

And there's right times to pluck up and harvest.

If we decide that the right time for planting is in, I don't even know, December, we are not going to get the crop that we are looking for.

There are right times for those events and we do not set those times.

Rather, God does.

We can turn to verse 8.

A time to love and a time to hate.

A time for war and a time for peace.

Most of us were born in peacetime.

Some of us were born in times of war.

That again was outside of our control.

And that we happen to live in the security of Edinburgh.

And that we're not living in Kiev.

Is down to God's providence.

That wasn't our decision.

So the times of our lives are outside of our control.

We are dancing to someone else's tune.

Someone else is setting the rhythm and that's God and that's not us.

Another feature that we see in this poem is that the times that we experience in our lives can be wildly contrasting.

From day to day.

Verse 8.

We'll pay attention to verse 8 because it changes the pattern.

Did you notice that all the couplets, they kind of corresponded to each other?

But these ones, they contrast.

So you go love, hate.

And instead of going peace, war, you go love, hate, war, peace.

It's drawing attention to these closing lines.

And it's drawing attention to the fact that they sum up much of the rest of what's come before.

To say that life comes with ups and downs that are very markedly different.

Our days are full of contrasts.

To see some of this.

Imagine verse 3.

In the ears of a shepherd.

There is a time to kill and a time to heal.

And they would understand that.

There is times when you slaughter the flock.

But you may previously have spent many hours and nights tending to that same sheep.

Verse 5.

There is a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them.

In the ancient Near East, during times of war,

you would place stones in your enemy's field to prevent them from growing crops.

But then in a time of peace, you would gather those stones together to make room for crops to grow.

Think about what he's saying about our attitude to our possessions.

There's a time to search and a time to give up.

A time to keep.

And a time to throw away.

And we've probably found ourselves doing that.

We recognize there's times when it's good for us to acquire.

There are certain things that are really important for us to hold on to.

But other things we realize.

It's okay to get rid of them.

We downsize and we declutter.

And that's good for us.

But they're very different seasons.

Again, our poem reminds us.

That the times that we live in.

Are beautifully complex.

Because to read this poem is a reminder that we're never solitary individuals.

We're made for relationship.

We live in relationship.

We're governed by relationships.

And because we're involved with other people,

our times are never going to be straightforward.

Verse 4.

A time to weep.

A time to laugh.

A time to mourn.

And a time to dance.

Families have weddings.

And families have funerals.

Families enjoy laughter.

And families mourn together.

Verse 7.

A time to tear.

And a time to mend.

Again, I didn't know this until this week.

But in the ancient Near East, we read this in our Bibles.

That with mourning would come the tearing of clothes.

But after a period of mourning, as people began to recover and to move on,

then those same clothes would be sewn up again.

There is in verse 7 a time to be silent and a time to speak.

Sometimes we comfort.

Sometimes we confront.

And the complexity that we see in our human circumstances

reminds us that we need much wisdom

to know how to live well together

and to respond well to different circumstances.

The last feature of our times,

as we think wider in the book of Ecclesiastes,

go to verse 9.

What do workers gain from their toil?

There is that reminder that our times bring no lasting gain.

We won't find lasting and eternal happiness

in the times that we experience.

Many people are living for the next big experience.

And Ecclesiastes is there.

It doesn't save.

It won't ultimately satisfy.

It reminds us that the times are set,

including the day of our death.

Which again presents that huge problem,

that huge barrier to trying to find ultimate meaning

only in this life.

In a sense, to read through the poem,

you get that sense that the times are cancelling each other out.

The idea of not making real progress.

Our times without God bring no lasting gain.

Now we're going to see,

in verses 10 to 15,

that our response to that

isn't, you know, fatalism.

You know, what will be, will be.

The right response is not,

well, let's eat, drink and be merry,

for tomorrow we die,

and to just live as if nothing matters

apart from enjoying what we've got.

Nor is the right response

to simply throw up our hands and say,

well, what's the point?

Rather, we're invited to trust

and worship God as Lord over all times

and to enjoy Him in the times that He gives to us.

But before we get there,

three practical observations

as we think about the problem of our times.

One, to do with expectations.

And it's simply this,

that we need to recognize

that the seasons of our lives

will change.

If we find ourselves

in a time of joy

or a time of sorrow,

we might expect that that will last forever.

God says the seasons of our lives will change.

And we know by experience

that those changes

in the times of our lives,

they often surprise us.

those changes can often be very dramatic.

But we need to be ready

that our times change.

We're all made with different temperaments.

Some feel more comfortable

with the up times and the happy times.

Some are more reflective or melancholic

or happy with the down times.

But life is never going to be flat,

calm, and constant.

And our poem is telling us that.

And so related to that

is a reminder that we need wisdom.

So this is Old Testament wisdom

and it's calling us to have wisdom from God.

And the wisdom from God,

as we think about the life

as we see it in Ecclesiastes,

is wisdom that learns to adapt.

Wisdom that learns to respond

to the changing times.

So we've used the illustration

of someone learning to drive.

A driving instructor

is teaching a pupil

how to face new driving conditions,

how to deal with different types of hazards,

different road conditions,

how busy the road is.

And wisdom learns how to respond well

to changing circumstances.

The Bible is teaching us

to understand that your joys

and your sorrows,

they come from God's hands.

And we should seek his wisdom

to know how to live well in both.

And again, related to that

is the idea of trust.

If you have walked around this area at all,

you might have seen

Cafe Nero just around there.

On the box outside,

I've got a picture of it up there.

Someone has spray-painted

we are not gods,

small g,

we are gods.

We belong to him.

And that's actually really helpful

when it comes to the times of our lives.

We need to learn to accept

our time-bound limits.

To learn to fight the impatience

that would want to push us

beyond the season

that God has us in right now

rather than live well

and patiently waiting on God

and patiently waiting on God in that season.

We're invited to trust the eternal God

and his unchanging character

and his unfailing promises.

And that moves us

from the problem of our times

to think about the comfort

in our times.

It's what we're going to see

in verses 10 to 15.

I don't know if anybody,

I guess a few folks

may be familiar with the TV program

as kids or as parents,

Art Attack,

Neil Buchanan,

something of a legend,

children's after-school television.

One of the things that Neil Buchanan

would do in his TV program,

Art Attack,

he would go to a beach

and he would begin

a piece of art.

But the camera would be really close up

as he was working

and so you'd see the fine detail

but you wouldn't really know

what he was making

until as he got towards

the end of his design,

the camera would pull back

and all of a sudden you'd see

it was as if the beach

had become this huge canvas.

That's a really helpful way

to think about

the burden

that our teacher talks about

in verses 10 and 11.

Let me read those again.

I have seen the burden

God has laid on the human race.

He has made everything beautiful

in its time.

He has also set eternity

in the human heart

yet no one can fathom

what God has done

from beginning to end.

Here is the burden.

There is beauty.

There is a rightness

to our times.

We are made with eternity

in our hearts.

We are made to reflect

and to seek ultimate

and to seek

to know what lies beyond

but

here is the burden

we cannot see

and understand

what God is doing

from beginning to end.

It's like we see close up.

We don't have the right camera angle.

We don't have the right perspective.

We cannot have God's perspective

on what he is doing

in our times.

But here is the comfort.

Having spoken of the burden

our teacher then gives us comfort.

Verse 14.

I know

there is certainty

that everything God does

will endure forever.

Nothing can be added to it

and nothing taken from it.

God's plans,

God's purposes

endure.

There is no plan B

with God.

There is nothing

that happens

in the world

that takes God

by surprise

so he has to modify

his plan.

The world

is often surprised

by the actions

of men.

Think again

about the Russian invasion.

God

was not

surprised.

That does not

throw off

God's plans

and purposes.

Verse 15.

Whatever it is

has already been

and what will be

has been before

and God will call

the past to account.

What's that saying

about God?

It's saying

God is over all time

and God is able

to weave

past,

present,

and future

all together

by his

grand

design.

The thousands,

maybe tens of thousands

of people

and places

and events

and moments

and conversations

and discoveries

and heartbreaks

and joys

and sorrows

and opportunities,

all of them

that make up

our lives

planned and patterned

by the God

of glory

who is the Lord

of time

and he knows

what he is doing

in his people's

lives.

Joni Erickson,

a name many of us

will be familiar

with,

paralyzed for many

decades,

living for years

with chronic pain.

I was reading

just this morning

one of her books

on suffering

and she was talking

about Ephesians

Ephesians 2 · chapter mention

chapter 2

which talks about

us being God's

workmanship,

God's masterpiece,

God's poem.

And on that

picture she said,

do I have the right

to say to God

the poet,

you need to change

that line.

I feel like

this line's a bit dark,

you need to sort of

brighten my life

somewhat.

Do I,

the poem,

know more

than the poet?

It's learning

to trust

in the God

who sets

the times.

Every moment

comes from

God's hands.

Us being here

today is no accident

but God's design.

He is weaving

this moment,

this day

into the great

poem of our lives

and what's the design

that he wants

for the people of God?

What is it that he's

working in us?

That his people

would be saved

by his love

and grace

and would be

molded

and conformed

into the beautiful

image of his son

Jesus.

That's his purpose

in all the times

that he sends

into our lives

using them

to make us

more like Jesus.

Now let's go back

to think about

some implications.

So since we

cannot control

and often cannot

understand

the times

that God sets,

what should

we do?

There are two

things that we're

told that we should

do in our text.

The first

is to concentrate

on enjoying

God's gifts

today.

Verse 12

and 13

I know

that there is

nothing better

for people

than to be happy

and to do good

while they live.

That each of them

may eat and drink

and find satisfaction

in all their toil.

This

is the gift

of God.

So we thought

about that

last week as well.

Whatever season

we find ourselves

in,

satisfaction

in God

and his everyday

gifts and mercies

is possible

if we accept

our limits,

if we trust

our unlimited

God

and if we receive

with gratitude

his kindness

to us.

Wherever we are,

wherever we find

ourselves in our lives

is by God's

design.

It's a portion

for us to receive

from our Father's

hand

so that we would

make the most

of the life

that we have

today.

So we're

invited to ask

God for wisdom.

Ask God

for wisdom

to act wisely

in our

relationships.

For wisdom

to have a good

attitude to our

possessions.

Wisdom

to know how

to use

our emotions

appropriately.

Today,

ask for wisdom

to know how

to Sabbath

well.

Think about

the times

and the seasons

that God sets.

Here's a season,

a day

for rest,

for worship,

for mercy,

for fellowship.

Ask God

for wisdom

to use the

gifts that he

gives

as a good

father.

So that's

the first

thing

that we're

invited to do.

The second

is to stand

in awe

of the God

who sets

the times.

That's what it

says in verse

14.

I know

that everything

God does

will endure

forever.

Nothing can

be added to

it and

nothing taken

from it.

God does

it so

that people

will fear

him.

So our

teacher has

been making

the point

time and

again,

as people

we are

limited.

We are

helpless.

We are

not in

control.

We are

dependent.

And that's

something that

can be very

humbling for

us.

Runs

contrary to

our culture

in many

ways.

But at

the same

time he

invites us

to see

that God

has no

limits.

He is

the Lord

of time.

He is

the Lord

over our

times that

his purposes

stand forever.

He knows

our changing

times that

can cause

us so much

confusion and

distress.

And so

our proper

response

is to

fear him.

To stand

in awe

of him.

to rejoice

with a

sense of

wonder

how great

he is.

That we

would behold

our God

in his

glory.

To receive

him as

our Lord.

Whatever our

situation is

today, to

follow him

in faith

and in

trust.

departs through

the

I want to

notice

time.

So the message of Ecclesiastes 3 is that God sets the times, God controls all times,

including the times of salvation. And the amazing truth that the Bible teaches is that the Son of

God, the creator of time, at just the right time, entered into time and history as the Savior that

we need. That's why we read the beginning from Galatians 4. When the set time had fully come,

God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under the law.

At God's set time, the Redeemer came, and he came to free us from judgment as lawbreakers by taking

the judgment that we deserve, so that we could become children of God in God's perfect timing.

Mark chapter 1, verse 15, as Jesus' public ministry begins, what does he say? He said,

Mark 1:15

the time has come. The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news. God's time has

come because God's King has come, and he comes bringing in the kingdom, and that's good news.

That Jesus has come to make a way for us once again to live in proper relationship to our God. And what

do we need to do? We need to turn from our sin, turn from thinking we are in control, where we

ignore God as Lord, and we need to trust in Jesus. And think about the times of Jesus' life as we think

about the Gospels. Jesus knew times of joy and feasting, and we read about those, but we also know he

wept tears and had sorrow. Jesus spoke of times of seeking lost sheep, but he also spoke of

separating, losing the goats who would reject him. Jesus spent much time speaking and speaking truth,

but at his trial, he was silent. At the cross of Jesus, there was a time of war as Jesus went to war

on the great enemies of Satan and sin and death, and achieving for us and for the world, a time of peace

for those who would trust in Jesus.

Romans chapter 5 verse 6 speaks of the wonderful timing of God's grace. At just the right time,

Romans 5:6

when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Didn't wait for us to clean ourselves up,

because we never can. Doesn't wait for us to be good enough for God's love, because we never will be.

When we were undeserving, powerless sinners, God, in love, at just the right time, sent his Son to die

on the cross. Paul, in 2 Corinthians chapter 6 and verse 2, in light of the Gospel, declares,

2 Corinthians 6 · chapter mention

now is the time of God's favour. It's wonderful. Today is the day of salvation. Today,

as we recognise Jesus as God's Son and Saviour, we're invited again to trust him, to live worshipping him.

When God entered time. To go back to our Lego sets, every Lego set, every set of instructions has one final

piece. Every piece of beach art, no matter how big, has one last line,

and then it's completed. Your life and mine will have one last breath. Our lives will draw to an end.

Only God knows our time. But by way of one last application, our teacher would say to us,

be prepared for the day of your death. Be prepared by looking to Jesus with trust. Trust in his death

as the sacrifice that you need to cover your sin, to bring you the forgiveness that you need.

Trust in his resurrection to new life to be the guarantee of the eternal life that you desire.

to be at home with God in a world of perfect love forever.

When we know Jesus as Lord, we can trust him in the times of our lives, remembering that he said,

surely I'm with you always to the end of the age.

Let's pray together in response.

Lord, our God, we thank you for the hope that we find in your words, in your words of truth.

That reminder that nothing lies outside of your control.

Lord, our God, we thank you for the time.

That you are altogether wise.

You know the beginning from the end.

That nothing stops your purposes.

And that your character is good.

And we can trust you.

Lord, help us, each one of us, to trust you

in the times of our lives.

Whether they be good or whether they be difficult.

Whether we feel like we have a handle on what's going on or whether we're thoroughly confused.

Help us to have faith and to trust.

And Lord, as we think about your control,

we pray once again for the situation that we see unfolding in the Ukraine.

Lord, we pray for a swift end to violence.

We pray for a wise international response.

That would halt the terror.

Lord, we pray that for those who are injured,

that you would bring comfort and healing.

Lord, we pray that as many cry out in distress,

that you would hear and that you would answer.

Lord, that in your amazing providence,

you would work through this awful situation

to bring your saving purposes to pass in Ukraine and Russia and beyond.

May the gospel message of peace ring out from churches in Ukraine and Russia and all around

so that many men and women and boys and girls would put their trust in the Lord Jesus,

not in a government or in a rule.

Lord, we also want to commit our church times into your hands.

We thank you for the opportunity that we have to begin to talk together and to learn together and to encourage one another

about how we can share our faith in our communities.

Lord, you know the challenges that we have, the struggles that we face.

And so we pray that that would be a time of equipping for us.

Lord, we thank you for the chance that we have to run Hope Explored in a few weeks.

And Lord, we know that there are so many people asking questions about hope and peace and purpose.

And we know that your word has answers and that Jesus is the answer.

And so as we invite our friends and our family and our neighbours and our colleagues,

may you put it in the hearts of many to come along.

And for those who maybe aren't clear on what Christianity teaches,

that we'd be able to gather together and as we spend time in Luke's gospel to have greater clarity

so that we could invite many to discover the good news that's found in knowing Jesus as Lord.

Lord, we think about our church.

We thank you for our elders and deacons,

for the way that they serve and pastor and enable the church to keep functioning.

And Lord, we pray as we vote for new deacons and elders that you would be guiding us,

that we'd be thankful for your provision.

Lord, that we'd be able to continue in our mission and purpose of making disciples.

Lord, we also pray for other churches as we're invited to.

We remember the church in Cumbernauld, just on the outskirts of Glasgow,

just recently vacant.

Lord, give them unity.

Lord, we thank you for the contacts that they have in their community through a toddler group

and through youth work.

And may that lead many to saving faith.

Lord, we also pray for New Mills Church in Ayrshire.

And we pray that you would bind them together in unity and in purpose and in the joy of the Lord Jesus.

We pray that you would give them wisdom as they think together about how to be most effective in sharing the good news with the towns and villages around them.

And Lord, we also remember the church in Moldova.

And we thank you that they are able to give help to refugees fleeing the Ukraine.

Thank you for women for mission who were able to help the church in Moldova last year and will continue to help this year.

Lord, that as your people love and serve in Jesus' name, may it draw many to trust in the Lord Jesus.

We pray this so that you would be glorified and so that many people would have deep and lasting joy.

Amen.

Now, as we sing together, our boys and girls will come back in.

Our hymn is, My Times Are In Your Hands.

So we can stand together to sing.

My Times Are In Your Hands

My God, I wish them there

My life, my friends, my soul, I leave entirely to your care.

My times are in your hand, whatever they may be.

Pleasing or painful, dark or bright, as you know best for me.

My times are in your hand, why should I?

Should I doubt or fear, a father's hand, why should I die or fear?

A father's hand will never cause his child a needless tear.

My times are in your hand, Jesus the crucified.

Jesus the crucified.

Those hands, my cruel sins that pierced are now my guard and guide.

My times are in your hand, such faith you give to me.

That after death at your right hand, I shall forever be.

Please have a seat.

As we come to the Lord's table, I wanted to continue with that sense of understanding that our times,

and indeed the time of salvation, is in God's hands.

One of the themes that we find in John's Gospel is Jesus speaking about his hour.

At the beginning of the Gospel, his hour had not yet come.

And then we come to John chapter 12 and verse 23, where we read,

John 12 · chapter mention

The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

And then as Jesus prays, the night before the cross, John chapter 17, he looked towards heaven and prayed,

John 17 · chapter mention

Father, the hour has come.

Glorify your Son that your Son may glorify you.

How was Jesus' glory revealed?

His glory is revealed through his death for sinners on the cross.

His glory is revealed in perfectly completing God's saving plan,

in perfectly demonstrating God's righteousness,

that God cannot sweep sin under the carpet but must deal with it,

but in his love and grace for his people,

he deals with it in his Son, Jesus,

in his loving sacrifice to bring us eternal life.

So as we share the Lord's Supper as the people of God,

we remember the glory of our Savior.

We remember with thankfulness that the time of salvation is in God's hand.

And in the fullness of time, just as he planned,

he sent his Son to be Savior.

Who is the Lord's Supper for?

The Lord's Supper is for all who have seen the glory of Jesus,

who have become aware of our great need for mercy and forgiveness,

who are trusting him for salvation,

who are part of his church.

In a moment, we will sing words from Psalm 116.

And as we do so,

our stewards will direct those who are wishing to share the Lord's Supper

to come and to take the elements from the front.

And then if you take them back to your seat,

then we can eat and drink together.

So we can remain seated while we sing Psalm 116.

And then folks can actually, no, let's stand.

And then as folks are invited,

you can come down and collect the bread and the wine.

How can I thank the Lord for all he's done?

With gratitude, salvation's cup I raise.

I'll call upon his name and will fulfill

my vows to him before his people's face.

The Lord holds dear the death of all his saints.

Hear me, O Lord, I am your servant true.

I am your servant and your handmaid son.

And from my chains I have been freed.

Thank offerings I will sacrifice to you.

And call upon the name of God the Lord.

When all his people in assembly meets.

With joy I will fulfill my solemn word.

Before his people I will keep my vows.

Within the courts of our God's holy place.

Within the city of Jerusalem.

Unto the Lord alone be all the praise.

And where is my friend of all his saints.

For the gods of Jerusalem.

Please have a seat.

Let me read our words of institution from 1 Corinthians chapter 11.

1 Corinthians 11 · chapter mention

For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you.

The Lord Jesus on the night he was betrayed took bread and when he had given thanks he broke it and said this is my body which is for you.

Do this in remembrance of me.

Let's pray together.

Lord our God we thank you that in your kindness to us that you have given us a visible picture of the gospel.

That this bread and wine representing the broken body and the shed blood of the Lord Jesus reminds us of our need of him.

It reminds us of your grace towards us in giving us your son as our saviour.

It reminds us that we come to this table as broken sinners who need forgiveness, who need ongoing grace and help from you.

And so we pray that as we eat and drink that we would do it with a sense of grateful wonder.

That you would be so kind to us.

That you would give us that spirit of worship.

That you would also give us that spirit of unity as we remember that we share one loaf as one body made one by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

That you would also give us that spirit of unity as we pray in his name.

Amen.

So when Jesus had given thanks he broke it and said this is my body which is for you.

Do this in remembrance of me.

Let's eat together to remember Jesus as Lord.

In the same way after supper he took the cup saying this cup is the new covenant in my blood.

Do this whenever you drink it in remembrance of me.

For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup.

You proclaim the Lord's death.

Until he comes.

Let's drink and proclaim the good news of our Lord's death.

And we will close our time together with a wonderful hymn that reminds us of the hope that we have in Jesus Christ.

Our hope in life and death.

And let's again stand to sing together with a praise.

What is our hope in life and death?

Christ alone, Christ alone.

What is our only confidence?

What is our only confidence?

That our souls to him belong.

Who holds our days within his hand?

What comes apart from his command?

And what will keep us to the end?

The love of Christ in which we stand.

O sing hallelujah.

Our hope springs eternal.

O sing hallelujah.

Now and ever we confess.

Christ our hope in life and death.

Christ our hope in life and death.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

What truth can come the troubled soul?

God is good.

God is good.

Where is his grace and goodness known?

God is good.

In our great Redeemer's blood.

Who holds our faith when fears arise?

Who stands above the stormy trial?

Who sends the waves that bring us nigh unto the shore, the rock of Christ?

followingैers, let us grow old man.

And what are my words that bring us nigh not?

God is true.

I have clouded praises roads in which we stand above the sea.

Amen.

God is good.

A booth extension 정 Valley.

God is a tenner.

Can we try and buy us not far?

And how many are we достиhing every day?

eno Jesus blood is angry now thejähr.

God is become holy, R is a tenner.

Whenever we confess Christ our hope in life and death.

Unto the grave what shall we sing?

Christ he lives, Christ he lives.

And what reward will heaven bring?

Everlasting life with him.

There we will rise to meet the Lord.

Then sin and death will be destroyed.

And we will feast in endless joy.

When Christ is ours forevermore.

O sing hallelujah.

Our hope springs eternal.

O sing hallelujah.

Now and ever we confess Christ our hope in life and death.

Now and ever we confess Christ our hope in life and death.

Amen.

And now may the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And the love of God.

And the fellowship of the Holy Spirit.

Be with you all.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.