Proverbs 3:5 & 6 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
Luke 3:3-6 (NLT) Then John went from place to place on both sides of the Jordan River, preaching that people should be baptized to show that they had turned to God to receive forgiveness for their sins. Isaiah had spoken of John when he said, “He is a voice shouting in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the LORD’s coming! Clear the road for him! The valleys will be filled, and the mountains and hills made level. The curves will be straightened, and the rough places made smooth. And then all people will see the salvation sent from God.’”
Communion is all about Remembering
1 Corinthians 11:23-25 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." 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."
#1. Remember: The Price
"This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me."
Isaiah 53:3-6 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
He is redeeming your sorrows…
Psalm 56:8 You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book.
Psalm 126:6 He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him.
#2. Remember: The Promise
Hebrews 8:10-13 (NLT) “The day is coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. This covenant will not be like the one I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand and led them out of the land of Egypt. They did not remain faithful to my covenant, so I turned my back on them, says the LORD. But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel on that day, says the LORD: I will put my laws in their minds, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. And they will not need to teach their neighbors, nor will they need to teach their relatives, saying, ‘You should know the LORD.’ For everyone, from the least to the greatest, will know me already. And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins.” When God speaks of a “new” covenant, it means he has made the first one obsolete. It is now out of date and will soon disappear.
John 1:17 (NIV) For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
Acts 10:38 God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.
2. Provides motivation
Hebrews 10:24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on.
Proverbs 27:17 (NLT) As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend.
3. Must be a priority.
Hebrews 10:25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing.
Acts 2:42-43 (NIV) They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles.
“The church is what christians are not where they attend.”
1 Peter 1:22 You must show sincere love to each other as brothers and sisters. Love each other deeply with all your heart.
4. Inspires Courage
Hebrews 10:25 ….but let us encourage one another-and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
“Our endurance at the end of the age will be dependent upon our ability to live well connected to the community of faith!”
John 15:18-19 If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. "If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you.
Galatians 1:10 I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ's servant.
Galatians 6:10 (NLT) Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone—especially to those in the family of faith.
James 5:16 Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective
Proverbs 9:10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
4. Wisdom visualizes before it verbalizes.
Proverbs 17:28 Even fools are thought wise when they keep silent; with their mouths shut, they seem intelligent
5. Wisdom lives in response.
James 3:13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.
Lack wisdom?
James 1: 5 & 6 If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.