We are here to remember Jesus through the sacrament of Communion.
• Remembering Him is not merely a sentimental act He asked us to do; it is a reminder of how deeply loved we are by God, and that is the healthy spiritual foundation for everything else we do and believe as Christians.
• We are here to remember Him as the Founder of the feast of the eternal life we have been blessed to enjoy day after day.
Text: 2 Corinthians 5:21 “God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21)
I. What God Did – God made Jesus A Sin Sacrifice for Us.
The prophecy, written 700 years beforehand, by the prophet Isaiah fulfilled: …the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. – Isaiah 53:6
Why would he do such a thing for us?
“God so loved…” (John 3:16)
II. What We Are – The righteousness of God.
1 Corinthians 1:30 It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness, and redemption.
Romans 3:21-22 But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile,
My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;
Our great challenge as believers is to pursue living righteously without trusting in our righteous living.
When he shall come with trumpet sound,
O may I then in him be found:
dressed in His righteousness alone,
faultless to stand before the throne.
As we take the cup, we do so to freshly affirm our faith in His blood as our only remedy for our sins and as our only claim to righteousness.
This righteousness brings benefits beyond our forgiveness and a future in heaven.
• Psalm 1:6 For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous.
• Psalm 5:12 Surely, LORD, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor as with a shield.
• Psalm 34:15 The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their cry;
• Psalm 34:17 The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles.
• Psalm 34:19 The righteous person may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all;
• Psalm 37:25 I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread.
• Psalm 55:22 Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.
To honor the gift the LORD died to give us let us identify with His righteousness, in His honor, with due attribution to Him. “Because of You, Lord, I am more than my behavior – good or bad. I am not only clothed in Your righteousness I am filled with Your righteousness.”
It also makes us suitable residences in which God’s Spirit dwells.
The Spirit not only alerts us to wrong behavior and prompts us to good behavior, but He also helps us to stay away from wrong thinking about ourselves. He helps us to see ourselves through the lens of who we are in Christ. Communion is one of the tools that He uses.
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