Christ and Him Crucified-Why?

The speaker discusses the importance of Christ and Him Crucified as the foundation of the gospel. He emphasizes that the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ are essential to the plan of God. The speaker then delves into the significance of the Passover, explaining how it represents Jesus Christ and His love, obedience to God, and the beginning of God's plan. The Passover is described as a critical event that affects the entire creation. The speaker highlights the importance of understanding the Passover and its connection to the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. The speaker also criticizes theological thinking and emphasizes the need to obey God's commandments for understanding. The discussion references Exodus 12 and the instructions for the Passover lamb. Well, thank you, Norbert, and greetings to everyone wherever you may be located on God's good earth, green planet, which is more and more being disturbed by what we're doing to it. Yes, church for title, Christ and Him Crucified, why? Paul says, if you want to turn with me to 1 Corinthians 2, Paul says, verse 1 of chapter 2 of 1 Corinthians, and I, brethren, when I came to you, I did not come with superiority of speech or wisdom, and he's referring here, of course, to the wisdom of men, in proclaiming the testimony of God to you. So he's setting the scene here for what he's about to say. This is the testimony of God, the testimony of God the Father, but also Jesus Christ. Now notice verse 2, for I decided not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Was Paul preaching an inferior gospel? Was Paul not preaching a full gospel when he says, I decided not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified? Well, let's turn across to the 15th chapter and see what else he has to say, because he makes a very similar introduction in chapter 15 and verse 1, which we know is the chapter where he addresses our resurrection and the incredible knowledge that God has given to us, what it's going to be like for us, at least seeing through a glass darkly, of what the resurrection is going to be for you and for me and for all the saints clear back to Abel. Chapter 15, verse 1, he says, Now I'm declaring to you, brethren, the same gospel of Christ and Him crucified. So again, is he preaching a limited gospel? Or is there more to that statement that we need to unpack? We'll attempt to do that as we continue today, this evening, wherever you are. The same gospel that I proclaim to you, which you also received, and in which you are now standing. Now, that's interesting, because Paul was the one who then established the teachings, the truth of God amongst these people. Let's drop down now to, well, let's see, verse 3. For in the first place, I delivered to you what I had received. And where did he receive this? He received it from Christ himself. What I received that Christ died for our sins, according to the scriptures. Let's move down to verse 12. But if Christ is preached that he rose from the dead, how is it that some among you are saying that there is no resurrection of the dead? That's a very similar teaching to the Pharisees, who had very high places in the Jewish hierarchy in Jerusalem. Why are some saying that there is no resurrection of the dead? He continues, for if there is no resurrection from the dead, neither has Christ been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain, and your faith is also in vain. And we are also found to be false witnesses. Paul saying, myself and the other apostles, we're false witnesses. False witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that he raised Christ. But if he hasn't been raised, we're lying. So you see the importance of Christ and him crucified. Was he in fact raised? So we continue, found to be false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that he raised Christ, when he did not raise, or whom he did not raise, if indeed the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, neither has Christ been raised, because it means the prophecy of Christ has not been fulfilled. But if Christ has not been raised, your faith is vain, and you are still in your sins. And those who have fallen asleep in Christ have been perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most miserable. And he goes on with the contrary, with the answer, he said, but now Christ has been raised from the dead. He has become the first fruit of those who have fallen asleep. So we see how important the crucifixion is. If Christ hadn't been crucified, there would be no resurrection. And your faith and my faith would be in vain. Christ would have just lived out his normal life and died. But that's not the way it occurred, not the way it happened. So okay, we're talking here primarily about the Passover. Yes, we're very close to the Passover. And every year, we have got, each one of us has got more to learn about the Passover of Jesus Christ, the Christian Passover. And we have that great volume, the Christian Passover. And it's one of those volumes that we can be rereading at this time of the year, as we are examining ourselves and preparing ourselves to partake of the Passover, because this is not a casual event. The Passover is an event that affects the entirety of the creation, as we saw last time when we were talking about Satan's great defeat. So it's very interesting. Let's turn back to the very first Passover. Yes, we're going to be repeating the old, old story. You may remember, tell me the old, old story of Jesus and his love. Well, they told the story of his love, but they didn't tell the story about the obedience to God the Father and Jesus Christ. There's so much that was missing in that. It's a very great attitude to have. But there's more to the story that each one of us needs to unfold every year, because the Passover is a critical event. Without the Passover, there is no plan of God for you and me. It's just that simple. So this is the beginning point, and this is why Paul says that when he was with the Corinthians, the gospel he would preach would be Christ and crucified. But he also unpacked that, little by little by little, and today we can understand it, the Passover, because it is reflected from the very beginning, from the book of Genesis clear through to the book of Revelation. It's the foundational stone, Christ and him crucified. What Paul is saying, it all begins here. Everything I preach is related to the Passover. If it's not related to the Passover, the crucifixion, which then goes into the resurrection, if it's not involved, if that's not involved, then we're just speaking hot air, we're not saying anything, we're just trying to impress people. So in Exodus 12, let's have a look at verse 1. This is the chapter where the Passover for the old covenant was established. The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt saying, this month shall be to you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year to you. Not March, not April, the first month of the year, that's how God labels the months. Now we know that the Hebrew language now attaches Hebrew names to it. When God talked about the Passover, now yes, Abel and Isaac were attached to that, but when God gave this, he said the first month, which the Passover, the days of unleavened bread occur, and then of course we have the seventh month with the, well we have Pentecost, but then the seventh month we have the remainder of God's feast. So God doesn't give them a name, he just gives them, he gave them a number. Same with the days of the week. God talks about the first day, second day, third day, right up to the sixth day, but then he gave the seventh day a name. He did not do that with any other day. The seventh day is the Sabbath, Exodus 20. It's the congregation of Israel saying, in the 10th month, correction, 10th day, so there we go, first month, 10th day of this month, they shall take to them each a lamb for a father's house, a lamb for a house. And if the household is too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbor next to his house take according to the number of the souls, each one according to the eating of the mouth, and shall count concerning the lamb. So the lamb was to be selected, and this was a Passover that was a domestic Passover. It was held in their homes. And if the lamb was too much for one family, then they could invite their neighbors, and they could join together. Notice verse five, your lamb shall be without blemish. Why? Because this lamb was to represent none other than the Lord Jesus Christ when he was to come. 1500 years later, a male of the first year, you shall take it from the sheep or from the goats, and you shall keep it until the beginning of the 14th day of the same month. And the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel, notice this next statement, and think of Christ. The whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it between the two evenings. And that was explained in the live stream last week again, and again, absolutely necessary information because of those who have taken God's festivals, and particularly the Passover, and tried to change the day it was kept using their theological thinking and reasoning. But most of that does not come from the Spirit of God. Theological thinking, yes, the ministers were instructed, you've got to learn to think theologically, which is contra-thinking from the scriptures. There's a great name that they have, the great phrase, that theology has been boiled down to faith-seeking understanding. I mentioned this before. So in order to get the understanding, you have to think with your mind and come to an understanding of the scriptures. How did that work out for worldwide? What does God say? God says, obey my word. Obey my laws and commandments, my statutes and judgments, my ordinances and my precepts. And if you do that, what does God tell us? A good understanding of all those that keep my commandments, not faith-seeking understanding. The understanding comes not from up here, but from the word of God that I'm sure most of us have before us. And we know, as you say, where that led, the Worldwide Church of God. And what's interesting is that after that paper, I think that was 1976, 1977 was the beginning of the STP, the Systematic Theological Project, which was based on theological thinking. Christians gave a lot of input. They were asked to give input on the various doctrines. But what do you think came out of the Systematic Theological Project, 77, 78? I think it came out in 78. That was a beginning of the next step. Then we had the removal of the top evangelist because of his activities. Then we had the Attorney General of Southern California come in and try to take over the church. And I'm not sure exactly, but about that time, we had all these top men going out to theological seminaries, faith-seeking understanding, which led to what? The doctrine of the Trinity, Christmas, Easter, the Lord's Supper. And we'll take that as often as we drink. Not once a year, but every week, every month, whatever. Where is WCG today? It's extinct. Doesn't exist. And those who are faithful to the Word of God, those who are seeking understanding from God's Word by obeying God's Word, are survivors. And that's a positive comment. If that was you, you're a survivor. Praise be to God. Number seven, they shall take of the blood and strike on the two side posts upon the upper door, upon the post of the house in which they shall eat it. So the blood was put on the two upright posts and on the post of the head. Does that have a symbol for you and me today? Well, yes, it does, because the two upright posts represent our heart. The blood of Christ, which was spilt, which was shared, is applied to the posts of our hearts and to the minds that God has given to us, purifies us, cleanses us. Because we've been baptized into the death of Christ, you may not have had this read to you when you were baptized, but here's the words of the baptism service. We ask a person, have you repented of your sins? Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior based on his blood, which is going to be put on your heart and on your mind so that you have the remission of sins on a daily, continuous basis, which is the meaning of the propitiation of the blood of Christ. It's always there for us. Are you ready? This is an interesting question. Even if you didn't have these words read to you, I didn't, I don't remember the words I had. I just knew that I had to be baptized. I was convicted by God's Spirit, which was so much I didn't understand. I was so spiritually young and immature. I think I was probably about 24, 25 at the time. So much I didn't understand, but I had faith in the blood of Christ. But anyway, let's continue. Are you ready to bury your old sinful self and your life? That's what we did at baptism. We buried the old self under that watery grave, symbolizing I no longer want to live according to the will of my flesh. I now want to live according to the will of God. And we made that commitment. Then the struggle began, didn't it? It's a struggle that we continue with today, but it's a battle that we're fighting. And the rewards are absolutely enormous. I'll read that again. Are you ready to bury your old sinful self and life into the baptismal covenant death? We're saying, I am going to die with Christ. I am prepared to die for Christ. The covenant death of Jesus Christ in this watery grave. So the old man is dead and buried, but we know he wants to resurrect himself again. And that's our battle, keeping him down. And Satan is here on the side, trying to stir the pot, trying to tempt us. God doesn't tempt us. That's why we pray, Father, lead us not to temptation as Christ was led, but deliver us from the evil one. That's what God's will is, as Jesus taught us, and that's what the Father wants us to pray daily. Daily, we're having that blood applied to our lives to help us to keep the old man buried dead, so that the new man can continue to grow in the grace and in the knowledge and the love of Jesus Christ, or the rest of our brothers and sisters within the body of Christ. And next, before we actually continue with the baptism ceremony, we ask this, are you going to walk in the way of Jesus Christ, keeping his commandments, and to love him with all your heart, all your mind, and all your soul, and all your being, and with all your strengths? Now, if you don't have a copy of the baptismal ceremony, I'm sure we'd be happy to send a copy of that to you, just so that you have it there to review it from time to time, and particularly as we're coming up to the Passover. All right, let's continue. They shall eat of the flesh. What are we to do with the body of Christ? Christ says, he that will eat my flesh and drink my blood. So here, in the first Passover, the blood wasn't involved. The lamb was killed, and the blood was spread on the doorposts. And I often wonder what happened to the remainder of the blood, particularly in the sacrifices that represented Christ. A lot of the blood just went onto the ground, just like the blood of Christ dripped onto the ground when he was hanging there on that cross, bleeding to death, before the stroke of the spear was on him, finally putting him in that place, in that condition of being dead, totally dead, for three days and three nights. There's another thing about that Passover, like gravy and koum, by changing the day, they also change what? The resurrection time. When is the resurrection going to occur? Yeah, Easter Sunday. I declare, frankly, my opinion on this. These men were totally in disregard to the lordship of God and his son, Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ has been placed above all authorities, all principalities and powers. He is the one that created them all. He's over them all. He's over you and me, because we have submitted to his role in our lives. We have submitted to his word, all through the crucifixion of Christ and him crucified. If he hadn't been crucified, we would not be keeping the Passover. There would be no extended meaning or spiritual meaning to the Passover that was kept by ancient Israel. But let's go back to that statement of verse six. All the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it. Maybe there's a message there for us is that our sins, Christ had to die for our sins. So we were personally involved in that event. They shall eat the flesh in that night, verse eight, roasted with fire and unleavened bread. And that's what we do today. They shall eat it with bitter herbs. Do not eat of it raw or boiled. Have it with water. And that was covered. You shall not let any of it remain. No, even the body of that lamb was sacred because it represented Christ. Ancient Israel didn't understand that. But that's the picture that we have today because, you see, we are told that we will learn from the things that happened, that were did and happened in ancient Israel. They were examples for us today. They had no idea about the coming of Christ. And now, because the blood was posted on the doorposts of the upper lentil, what happened? The death angel passed over and slew the firstborn of all those Egyptians who were not protected by that blood. So because our hearts and our minds, in fact, our whole being, our whole beings are covered by the blood of Christ. Because, you see, that sacrifice is perpetual. Christ does not need to die, did not need to die every year. His sacrifice was a one-off because it was more, it was a physical sacrifice. But the impact is cosmic. It affects the entirety of the universe. And this way you shall eat it with your loins girded, your sandals on, your feet and your staff in your hands. And you shall eat it in trepidation. When we keep the Passover, we need to be in an attitude of total looking to Christ, looking to God the Father. Realizing that taking the bread, which represents Christ's body, and the wine, which represents his blood, is that we are reconfirming what we said at baptism, that we are ready to bury our old sinful self and life into the baptism covenant of death of Christ Jesus in this watery grave. And every year we keep the Passover, that is what we are recommitting ourselves to. It's not that we don't, but we need to be reminded. As Paul said, you know, it's no problem for me to remind you of these things because, you know, it's beneficial to you. And Peter says, he said, look, I'm writing to you again, but I'm writing to you to keep these things in mind. This is why, you know, this is the beginning of God's plan for salvation. The Passover is such an important event. And Paul says, as we'll read shortly, we're to examine ourselves to make sure that we are in the face. All right, let's turn to Matthew, the 26th chapter, because there we'll find what Paul had to say. Christ, not Paul, but Jesus had to say about the Passover before it actually occurred. Matthew 26, we want to begin reading the first couple of verses. Matthew 26, verse 1. Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples. And they really did not understand what Jesus was saying, nor the fulfillment of what was about to take place. You know that after two days, the Passover takes place. And the Son of Man is delivered to be crucified. As Paul says, what does he say? 1 Corinthians 2.2. They declared that I would preach nothing to you, but Christ and him crucified. It's the beginning, it's the foundation of the salvation of the family of God. Of you and of me. God's promise that we are locked into by the Word and by the Spirit. The Passover takes place and the Son of Man is delivered up to be crucified. Now it's interesting when we turn over to the book of Acts, we find out who it was that killed Christ. Acts, the third chapter. And let's read verse 15. And here the apostles are preaching. And here's Peter saying, just this one verse, verse 15, he's telling the people. And you killed the author of life. At the time of the Passover, ordained by God, right back to the book of Genesis. And God has raised from the dead, whereof we are witnesses. In 1 Corinthians, is it 15 or 11, Paul says that he was seen of 500 brethren, 500 people. Many of them still alive today, though some had died. So if you wanted to prove that Christ had died and whether he'd been resurrected, go and ask one of those people who were eyewitnesses. And he was talking to the Corinthians, not people around Jerusalem who were there and witnessed the event. Well, some of them anyway. So again, you killed. So our sins are part of that. We are the ones that were involved in the slaughter of Jesus Christ. Every sin that we commit. Does that tell us a little bit of how merciful and how gracious God is to us? Now, once we're converted, of course, we're not sinning deliberately. We're not practicing sin as a continuous basis. We're living our lives striving to overcome the sin that dwells within, to overcome the lust of the flesh, the pride of the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the presumptuous pride of the physical life, as well as the attacks from Satan. Why? Why do we do that? Why don't we just let everything go and let the river just wash us down the stream into the ocean? Why don't we just live life, be happy, be merry, wine, women, and song? Because we know what the end is, and we don't want that end. We want the end that God has promised us. And God is there day by day, forgiving us our sins as we pray, Father, forgive us our trespasses, forgive us our sins, forgive us our debts against you, and forgive us as we, or according to the way that we, forgive those that have debts or trespasses or sin against us in that sense. Those who maybe have tried to offend us, those who have done terrible things to us. Turn the other cheek. Soft answer turns away wrath. So many principles. And God raised him from the dead. And you can see the same, let's see, there's another scripture you can turn to in Acts 5 and verse 30. I want to do a brief recap. We saw in Romans the 8th chapter, and we will turn there, Romans the 8th chapter, just to see, again, the importance of the Passover, because this is what it's talking about. Verse 19. Romans 8 and verse 19. The earnest expectation of the creation itself is awaiting the manifestation of the sons of God. That can only happen if we repent of our sins, and we continue daily repenting of our sins, we continue daily taking on the mind of Christ, letting the mind of Christ dwell within us, letting his word dwell within us richly, by keeping and maintaining that contact with God the Father. So again, it's the whole creation. I think last time I tried to talk about, you know, how big is the universe. There was an amazing illustration given by this man. He said, if you want to know how great the creation is, and how much we can see through the James Webb telescope, is take a grain of sand, think of this, take a grain of sand and put it at arm's length. That's all we're seeing through James Webb. How much greater is that creation? Constantly on YouTube, you can see and download or save the various incredible constellations and galaxies made there by the countless billions upon billions, all created by the hand of God, with sons and power that we can't comprehend. And that same power is directed towards us, to you, and to me, in order to conquer that old sinful man. It's there if we want to use it. It's a promise. It's available 24-7, 365 days a year. Even that will probably change with Christ's return. Maybe we'll go back to a 360-day year, as it was apparently at the beginning. The suffering of the present time, I'm not worried if you compare it to the glory, yeah, glory, that shall be revealed in us. What glory? The glory of God. Why? Because we accepted Christ and Him crucified every single day of our lives, as we prayed to the Father, Father, forgive us our trespasses, forgive us our sins, forgive us our debts against you, and to thank Him every day that He does this. And Passover coming up, we're renewing this again, saying we are fully committed, and every year we endeavor to be committed even more and more and more and further, until the mind of Christ is fully, and the maturity of Christ is fully developed within us. It's a process of time. I just think back at my life, and I think, how merciful God has been with me, because how lacking and how neglectful I've been so much of the time, how much I've just spun my wheels. But I've come to learn how merciful God is. And the older I get, I think the more I begin to appreciate that, things I couldn't appreciate when I was younger. Verse 19, For the earnest expectation of the creation itself is awaiting the manifestation of the sons of God. Yes, that little speck of grain, that little grain of sand, which is all we can see of the creation. Then you've got the rest that God spread out like a curtain, as Isaiah says, and not one of the astronomical or the various galaxies, stars, whatever the God has created, not one fails. Now, that doesn't mean to say there may not be a supernova, because what happens with a supernova? Well, as I understand, when the star system explodes, it gives off the gases, which over billions of years, again, are forming new planets, new suns, whatever. In other words, the process of recreation, it's an ongoing process. So the death of a star means the birth of another one or more, as far as we know. Some of these secrets will be revealed to us. But this whole creation, everything that we can see, even the angels are waiting for this event to take place. The manifestation of the sons of God. Verse 20, because the creation was subjected to vanity. Satan, the mind of Satan, Eve, Adam, subjected to vanity. They sinned. Did God know that would happen? Very likely. Did God know that Satan would sin? Well, God gave Satan, or Lucifer as he was then, one name that's used for him before he fell. God gave him freedom of choice. So did God know? God knew the possibility. Did God know for sure? I don't know. We don't know. We're not told. But very likely he did. Did he know that Eve would sin? Yes, I'm sure he did. Because he was about the process. Because Genesis 3 and verse 15 was already in play. And we know what that says. What God says. That Jesus, or that Satan, was going to wound the heel of Christ, or the Christ. And that Christ was going to crush Satan, his government, his head. And we know, of course, the rest of the story, eventually he'll be removed entirely from the whole created order. So again, let's go back to verse 19. The earnest expectation of the creation itself is awaiting the manifestations of the Son of God, because the creation was subject to vanity. The mind and will of Satan. God allowed that because he wants us to build the character that Satan refused to build. And Satan came to that point where he came to the point of no return. Again, Ezekiel 28, Isaiah 14, which gives the background and the history to that. But for us, we're made of the flesh. We also have the opportunity to choose. And we also have a sacrifice. And that's called Christ and him crucified. This is why it was so important to Paul, you see, because what Paul is saying is what he's writing here in Romans 8. How the crucifixion of Christ and him crucified is impacting and going to impact the entirety of the creation. Even the angelic realm. Because they are waiting for this to occur. In preparation for Passover, just as a sidebar, it would be good to go through the book of Corinthians, or the books of Corinthians, and see the problems that Paul had to deal with. And what he said at the beginning, you know, I'm writing to you somewhat in trepidation, because he had so many things to correct him on. He was expecting that many would not accept what he had to say. And, you know, that's true of today. Sometimes the elders, because they can see people, or even congregations going in a wrong direction, we stand in fear and trepidation because we don't want to not declare the word of God. But on the other hand, we don't want to see people departing from the body of Christ. Because, you see, God says, I think it's in Ephesians, it is the will of God that none perish. No one. That's not what God wants. Will some perish? Yes. Why? Because they're going to say, they're taking, and they will take in future, the same path that Lucifer took to become Satan. They will not turn back, because they have become set in their ways. This is why it's so important for us, again, coming up to Passover, to make sure that we are ready and prepared for it every year. And every year, just asking God to take us to the deeper levels by his Spirit, to what that meaning is. And what the meaning of the Passover means for us personally, but for our brothers and sisters in the church. And, you know, sidebar, God wants us to be closely knit together. I was very troubled in spirit when someone in the church said to me that they no longer attend the church. I don't know what that means, but we just want to, we decided that we're going to be closely linked together. Loosely connected. Is Christ divided? Well, Paul covers that in 1 Corinthians, 1st chapter, 2nd chapter, 3rd chapter. Is Christ loosely connected to you and me? If he's loosely connected to me and he's loosely connected to you, and we're loosely connected together, how serious are we about our walk in Christ? What does Christ want? Christ wants us to be tightly knit together. Even though we are many people in one body, we are all of one spirit. And we are all a part of the body of Christ. Now, that raises the question, what about all these other groups? Well, in the meantime, we have to leave that up to God. God has called us into a body that he wants us to be tightly knit together with each other. In word, all speaking the same thing, which is what God says and what God gives to us in his word, but also knit together in love. And a lot of this is demonstrated in the way that we pray for one another when we have trials and difficulties. And when God looks down and sees that, what does he do? He takes it personally. Because he sees if you love a brother and a sister, and if he sees that somebody has offended you and upset you, maybe even injured you, and you forgive them, what about God forgiving you? Is he not going to be willing and ready to forgive you because you've been willing to forgive an enemy? Absolutely. Absolutely so. Verse 21, In order that the creation itself might be delivered from the bondage of corruption, into the freedom of the glory of the children of God, the creation is waiting to be set free from whatever it was that Satan did and Satan caused. The angels are waiting. So again, in preparation for the Passover, I would recommend reading through the book of Corinthians and just see how many things Paul had to correct the Corinthians for and the trepidation that he was in, in having to correct them. And then, of course, 2 Corinthians, where they responded, which he was so joyful about, but then there were more things that they had to understand. And maybe you'll want to read again 2 Corinthians 10, and particularly verse 5, where it talks about, you know, what we have in our minds, the strongholds, that God wants us to bury under the water. Some that haven't totally been buried under that water. What is my stronghold or strongholds that I may have? And I continually ask God to show me, you know, what are the strongholds that are standing in the way between me and my relationship with you, Father, and the family of God? So we can do that. So that we can bring everything together. We can do that. So that we can bring every thought into the captivity of Christ and just reject that. We are a work in progress. And the work is being done by God the Father. Well, I need another 2 or 3 hours to have more on this, but let's have a look at 1 Corinthians 11, because 1 Corinthians 11 is a chapter which begins talking about healings. It reminds us of the arguments we had in the church about healings and makeup and all the rest of it. You know, majoring in the minors, Christ being crucified, getting left on the shelf, or bottom shelf, by the way, not top shelf. Here, makeup became the top shelf issues. If we'd taken care of the top shelf issue of Christ and him crucified as Paul preached, maybe we wouldn't have had the problems that we had in the worldwide. Maybe some of those people might still be with us. We don't know. But we come down to about verse 17. Paul gives some of his strongest words here, because what the people were doing, they were coming along and keeping as he says. Let's just pick it up. Now, in this I am commanding you, I do not praise you, because when you assemble together, it is not for the better, but for the worse. Well, first of all, I hear that there are divisions among you, the poor versus the rich. It might be the other way around, probably. And I partly believe it. For it is necessary that heresies be among you, and we've had them, so that the ones who are approved may become manifest among you. Yes, we can tell those people that are solid in the word of God, those that are seeking the mind and spirit of Christ, the love of God. When we are that way, then we can stand out as examples not through pride, not through boasting, but just to be an example, which God wants us to be, particularly for those younger brethren coming that God is calling to the church. They need examples. We need to be those mature examples, expressing the mind and the thinking and the words of Christ. Therefore, when you assemble together in one place, it is not to the Lord's sake, when you assemble together in one place, it is not to the Lord's supper. Now, there's two explanations to that. The Lord's supper, of course, is what many do today, keeping the Lord's supper, which is not the Passover. That's the Eucharist. But here, it also refers back to the Lord's supper, which he had with the disciples before he then changed the symbols. To the bread and the wine, representing his blood and his body. Do read, before the Passover, John the sixth chapter, where Christ goes into that whole explanation about those that are eating his body and drinking his blood are those that are his, those who are the children of the Father. Which means, as we read the word of God, and Jesus Christ is the word of God, we're actually imbibing of him. And also, of the blood of Christ, to be drinking of that. So, John six is very important, coming after the Passover. So, we're drinking the blood, we're actually repenting continuously of our sins every day. Eating his body, we are devouring the word. He is the word of God. The word of God is spirit. The words he says are spirit. So, as we read these words, the spirit then is connecting with us, with our minds, and with God's spirit within us. And we're comprehending. Okay, I just want to go to one more scripture in closing. And again, it's the book of Hebrews. And again, I'd suggest, before Passover, if you get the opportunity, do read the book of Hebrews, because it's all about Jesus Christ and him crucified, and why he was crucified, and because of his crucifixion, where he is today. He'd be placed above all principalities and all powers. If he had rejected, well, if he had sinned in the first place, we'd have no savior. But if he hadn't been crucified, then we have no high priest that can take our request for repentance and explain to the Father, you know, why it is, and the difficulties that we have as weak, physical, mortal human beings. And this is why the fourth chapter is one that I really do appreciate and turn to it many times. We begin in the twelfth verse. Hebrews, the fourth chapter, and we'll end here. Verse 12. The Word of God is living and powerful. The Word of God? Who is the Word of God? Is it talking about just the written Word? Or is it talking about something else? Well, if we go down a verse or two, verse 13, And there is not a created thing that is not manifested in his sight. His is capital letters, and it's referring back to verse 12. The Word of God. And notice the Word of God is rightly also in capitals. So let's read that. For the Word of God is living and powerful. So as we read the Scriptures, the Word of God, the mind of Christ, what does it say? It is living by spirit and power. Powerful. Sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of both soul and spirit. It's right to the very core, the very center of our being, our thinking, our processing, of information and data, revealing our sins, revealing the strongholds within. It can cut right down there, if we allow it. If we ask God to show us, He will. And both of the joints and of the marrow. Now, that's interesting. Because in a former life, I was managing a family butchery business. And, you know, when you chop, particularly some of the larger bones up, when you chop them down the center, we used to put them through a saw, you see this soft, what's called spongy-type substance in the center of the bones. It's a marrow. So, you know, the Word of God gets right. This is really descriptive discrimination, how deeply it can get into us. It's a physical explanation of what the Spirit is able to do with the very inner workings of our lives. And that's interesting also. Do you know where the blood is produced in the body? In the marrow. Stem cells in the marrow produce the blood. And when we get a cut or a wound and we bleed, a message goes through to the stem cells and immediately new blood cells are formed. And this is all God's creation. Millions just start pouring out and replace the blood that's been spilt. Interesting. You might want to look that one up on the internet. Very interesting. Verse 13. And there is not a created thing that is not manifested in the sight. So, again, God, the Father, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit see right to the very center. They just know everything about us. And they want to help. That's why we have Christ and him crucified. But all things are naked. Even right down to the very marrow of our bones. In other words, the marrow of our spiritual bones, if you like. And laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account. Having, therefore, a great high priest and remember, Christ is our high priest. The book of Hebrews explains that role perfectly. Who has passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God. We should hold fast the confession of our faith. And again, that's what we're doing, coming out to Passover. For we do not have a high priest who cannot emphasize with our witnesses but one who was tempered or tempted in all things according to the likeness of our own temptations. Yet he was without sin. Think about this passage. Pray over it in regards to yourself. As I need to personally for myself. Therefore, this is a wonderful statement. This is so encouraging. This is so positive. Therefore, because of Christ and him crucified and now that crucified Christ has been raised and is now the high priest at the right hand of God the Father, what are we to do? Verse 16. Therefore we should come with boldness to the throne of grace so that we may receive mercy. And can we thank God for the mercy he has already extended to us and find grace and to thank him for that grace and that ability to be in regular contact with him to help in time of need. So we're to come boldly before the throne of God. And that's what Paul says as he says many other things. Well, that's what we have time for. So just hope that that may help you as you prepare for the Passover for 2023 coming up just in a few short weeks.