SPECIAL DAY: April 8, 2004 Maundy Thursday Service, 6:00 p.m., Potluck Supper Candlelight Communion.

Lessons: Psalm 116:1-2, 12-19; Exodus 12:1-4, 11-14; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; John 13:1-17, 31b-35.

Sermon Title: The Festival Sacrifice

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  1. You have probably seen them, they are detergent commercials.

    1. Person takes mud, coffee, juice, or grass and rubs it on the fabric.

    2. It is put into a small clear container with a bit of the detergent

    3. The container is swished around for a few seconds and the fabric comes out clean.

    4. This will not always work as well as it is demonstrated,

    5. Especially if there is a major problem.

      1. A somewhat inexperienced person in a hurry indiscriminately loads the washing machine with colors and whites.

        1. Underwear comes out pink.

        2. There is not much that can be done.

          1. Do you wear the pink underwear?

          2. Do you buy new underwear.

      2. What if you cannot afford to purchase the new?

      3. Where do you find a replacement?

  2. Humanity is stained with sin

Johnny Cash was known as The Man in Black, because of his somber wardrobe.

He is famous for his country tunes, but the truth is that he always wanted to be a gospel singer.

Problem was, his producers wanted him to stay away from religion in his music.

When he announced to a television audience, "I am a Christian," the network sent one of the producers to order Cash not to talk about religion on the air.

A record producer told him that gospel profits "can't even cover the cost of the recording."

He managed to record several gospel albums anyway, but according to Christianity Today (November 2003) he often had to push for them.

"My record company," he lamented, "would rather I'd be in prison than in church."

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  1. We can be in church and still be in prison.

    1. Just look at some of the stains with which we are confronted?

      1. Unresolved emotions.

        1. Pain

        2. Anger

        3. Revenge

      2. Broken relationships.

        1. Careless accusations

        2. Unkind words

        3. Misunderstood actions

      3. Unforgiven sin.

        1. Sins of omission, avoidance or apathetic.

        2. Sins of commission, deliberate sins

  2. There is no humanly produced stain removal solution that can remove the stains of sin

    1. Stains can only be removed with the solution that God provides in Jesus Christ.

    2. Jesus is the Passover Lamb that is to be sacrificed for us.

  3. God provides for stain removal.

    1. God's stain remover creates freedom.

Russia's secret police was developed to persecute Christians.

But one of its members, Sergei Kourdakov, encountered God's word as he was trying to destroy the Christian faith.

In his book The Persecutor, he tells of his first chance to read and study the words of Jesus because of a young Christian woman named Natasha, whom he admired.

He wrote:

"That night, at the first opportunity I had, lying in my bunk at the Naval Academy, I opened up those pieces of paper and began to read them again. Suddenly the words leaped out of those pages and into my heart. I read on, engrossed in the kind words of Jesus. This was exactly the opposite of what I had expected. My lack of understanding, which had been like blinders on my eyes, left me right then, and the words bit deeply into my being. It was as though somebody were in the room with me, teaching me those words and what they said. So this is what Natasha believed. The words grabbed my heart. I was somehow frightened and uneasy, like a man walking on unfamiliar ground. I read the words and reread them and put them down, and still they came back to my mind again and again. Those words were leading Natasha to be a better person and help others. They haunted me. It was a feeling totally new to me."

      1. This is the purpose of this night.

      2. It is to reveal the way to freedom.

    1. The Israelites experienced an exodus from Egypt.

    2. We have our own Exodus before us.

      1. We are provided an exodus to resolved emotions.

      2. We are provided an exodus to reconciled relationships.

      3. We are provided an exodus to forgiven sin.

Windshield Message: A Child's Perspective (1)

One rainy afternoon I was driving along one of the main streets of town, taking those extra precautions necessary when the roads are wet and slick.

Suddenly, my daughter, Natalie, spoke up from her relaxed position in her seat. "Dad, I'm thinking of something."

This announcement usually meant she had been pondering some fact for a while, and was now ready to expound all that her five-year-old mind had discovered. I was eager to hear.

"What are you thinking?" I asked.

"The rain," she began, "is like sin, and the windshield wipers are like God wiping our sins away."

After the chill bumps raced up my arms I was able to respond. "That's really good, Natalie."

Then my curiosity broke in. How far would this little girl take this revelation? So I asked, "Do you notice how the rain keeps on coming? What does that tell you?"

Natalie didn't hesitate one moment with her answer, "We keep on sinning, and God just keeps on forgiving us."

  1. The Festival Sacrifice is being prepared.

    1. No matter how crudely Jesus is treated.

    2. No matter how much he is misunderstood.

    3. No matter how much he is ignored.

    4. He still keeps on forging us.

    5. Thank God.

      1. Received by E-mail, original message from Musical Patty P

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