Good morning!
I'm starting a timer, because this is a short message.
So like most everyone else here, I assume I'm disappointed that we're here.
But I think we'll still have fun right. We can all live with disappointment I'm not going to stand up here.
I feel too tall. I had this really, really fun opening that I was going to do.
But it doesn't make sense. But when I have a microphone and we're inside, so we're just going to forget about that one.
Oh, a! It also would have only worked if my Harris was sitting somewhere, so I don't know if he's here, but that would have been it would have been really really unfortunate for my opening then.
So the how many people knew they were coming to Sunday school this morning?
Ok, all right. Well, walk to Sunday School, even those of you who didn't plan to be here hopefully, there's something for everyone in the next few minutes.
My timer's up there, so when it goes off I'm going to have to run and get it.
That's my second mistake. So in preparation for this, I wanted to give a short message about why we're here, and I don't mean existentially.
What's the meaning of life? Why were we born? All those counties, I mean, why are we here in this building every Sunday today?
Maybe, for the food. Maybe some kids are here because they wanted to go fishing.
Sorry. I don't. We probably won't do that today, or if you do fish, you won't catch anything.
So a couple of weeks ago I talked to the sonic school kids and I asked them this question, why are you here today?
And I was impressed because not a single one of them said, because my parents made me come, which at the age of some of the kids that I was asking is probably the answer I would have given when asked that question just like 10 years ago, because I'm you know, like 14 so these are some of the answers that
I got, and I think these are all fantastic answers to remember Jesus on the cross, to worship or to praise, to give thanks, to learn about the angels, to study God's word, to fellowship, to meet with, or to talk to other Christians, to learn how Jesus saves, lives, that's a pretty important
one to learn about the Bible, and to participate in the Lord's Supper.
So these are all really good reasons, and I think it's fantastic.
It says a lot about us here as a community of believers, that these are the answers that our kids gave, and because we're in Sunday school, I'd like to say a little bit on behalf of all the teachers.
I didn't hold the teachers. I'm fairly certain none of their parents made them teach, but we would all say, probably very similar things, but also add to that our willingness and our desire to teach the children these things to raise up the children in way that honours God and we thank you for giving us the
opportunity to do that every week that you send your kids. You trust us with that tasks that we've accepted.
So I just wanted to read a couple of verses from John. Chapter one. Again.
So these are really, really good reasons that we heard from the kids.
So John, chapter one. I'm sorry. First John. Chapter one versus 5, through 7.
This is the message which we have heard from him, and declared to you that God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all.
If we say we have fellowship with him, and we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.
But if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanses us from all sin.
So this is the message. This is the key message that we hope to pass on to our children that we hope the children who come to Sunday school are listing sometimes occasionally sitting still and quiet and paying attention, because this is what we try to pour out to the kids.
So if I were to say for myself some of the reasons why I'm here again, not just today, not, you know, because it's raining, and we can't have some fun outside we're still going to have fun inside is the ability to again.
Gather with those as a friend of mine who passed a couple years ago, used to say, to gather with those of like precious faith, to come to this building, and to remember the sacrifice that Christ did for us as we heard this morning in the message that we're free from judgment there is no judgment
for us, our sin still had a penalty that had to be paid.
But Jesus accepted the penalty for that sin. So we're free from that, and we can be happy.
As we heard this morning, being free from judgment, and it's difficult in this world, as I'm sure you kids know, surrounded by, unless you're attending a Christian school surrounded by the the world outside of this building, every day, when you go to school now, how many of you are done with school, really not just
on summer break. Oh, yeah, summer break, I think hopefully for everyone.
Too bad. Just remember when you get to be my age, and also slightly younger, and probably also older.
There is no so enjoy it while you while you can. You lose the ability to have summer break, you know, after the age of 18, ish, but it's difficult in this world to be in a place that focuses on the positive message that we find in the so to be able to come here.
And gather together is something that none of us should take lightly, because outside of this world, we're surrounded by bad news.
We're surrounded by negative things. And so in this building is a place of safety and sanctuary for all of us, where we can.
The sacrifice of Jesus. We can talk to others who share that that faith, and we can learn more about it.
So I'm going to read another verse here, John, 6.
I think my notes say 68. That could be wrong, because I'm in the medical profession, so I take pride in not being able to read my own handwriting.
Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life also.
We have come to know that you are the Christ, the Son of the living God.
So these are the words that we hope to speak to the children every week the words of life, the words of eternal life.
One of my favorite musicians is Toby Mac, so I don't know who knows Toby, Mac.
I've known Toby Mac since I was probably about the age of maybe this row he's been around for a long time.
If I were to be able to choose role model, a person human for my kids to listen to and emulate, it would be Toby Mac if you don't know about the story of his life.
It's a fantastic story, pointing to God, but he has a song on his album, which is also titled, Speak Life.
But I'm gonna read one verse from that song lift your head a little higher, so spread the love like fire.
Hope will fall like rain when you speak life with the words you say.
You'll notice I'm not singing it's very hard not to sing, but you'll all appreciate that.
I don't so speak life, speak, life to the debtest, darkest night.
Speak, life, speak, when the sun won't shine, and you don't know.
Look into the eyes of the brohehearted. Watch them come alive as you speak.
Hope, you speak love, you speak life so again. That's the reason why we come here.
We come here to speak life. We come here to hear life spoken, and when I say life, I mean specifically eternal life, which is the opposite of eternal death.
That's the ability, the gift, the freedom to speak eternity with Christ in heaven after this world passes away.
So we all know that sin entered the world through Adam and Eve.
I'm going to read another verse here, Romans 6, 23.
That one I know is right, for the wages of Sinn's death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
That's why we come here. That's the reason why this building is here.
Why we are here as a community to to learn about, to understand, to teach about that eternal life personally, I'm thankful that many years ago, when I was roughly the age of this row that I heard and recognized the words of life that were spoken to me as a young child throughout my entire
life, now and I'm grateful to be able to pass those words on to the next generation to anyone that's willing to listen, especially when when I'm not singing.
So there was one more verse that I was going to read, that I didn't write down on my note cards.
It's mistake number 3, because I don't have it memorized.
It is in the book of Ecclesiastes, which may sound like a very strange verse or book to read from, but I stumbled across this verse, I don't know if I had ever read or heard it before in a devotion that we were doing as a family maybe a couple of weeks
ago, and in this passage, starting in and I won't read the whole passage.
Just one verse I still have 5 min left. I'm talking too fast, but in Ecclesiastes, chapter 12, I'm going to read the whole passage now, because I've got 5 min starting in verse 9 in my Bible I have 2 translations.
Here, because I think each of them has something that captured me equally.
In the new King James version. This passage is titled, The Whole Duty of Man.
In the new international version. It's titled the conclusion of the matter.
So I'm going to read verses 9 through 13 and then I'm going to, or 9 through 12 now I'm going to pause for a second, moreover, because the preacher was wise.
He still taught the people knowledge? Yes, he pondered and sought out and set in order many proverbs.
The preacher sought to find acceptable words, and what was written was upright words of truth.
The words of the wise are like, Go, and the words of scholars, like well-driven nails, given by one shepherd.
And further, my son, be admonished of these of making many books.
There is no end and much study is wearisome to the flesh.
So what this means to say is that it's fantastic.
You can set your whole life to learning, to thinking, to trying to understand.
There's nothing wrong with that. Seeking after knowledge is a good thing.
We hope that as we teach the kids in Sunday School, they're seeking after knowledge because it helps them sit a little bit more still.
Maybe pay a little bit more attention. But the the point of this really is in the next verse and I'm going to read from both of the translations, because I think each one the words are a little bit different.
But they say they say the same thing. I just the one says it differently than the other.
So in the new King James version it says, let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter.
So this is like the original mic drop. If I go back to the the Niv.
What it says is now that all has been heard, let it here is the conclusion of the matter going back to the new King James.
Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is man's all.
If I go back to the Niv fear God and keep his commandments for this is the duty of all mankind.
That's the reason why we are here, and it not just us.
Why every person is here, not every person is going to do what is being asked here, not everyone is going to understand that this is the purpose of life, the purpose of life is to follow God, to fear God, and to keep His commandments.
That's why everything is here. We were created. Humans were created to worship God.
That was broken when Adam and Eve sinned. But since that time God has put put a plan in place to redeem us, to bring us back to that fellowship that we can have with Him.
And that's what we teach our kids here in Sunday school every Sunday.
This. That's the the whole purpose of life. Now the commandments.
There's more than one. So it's not just this one verse, but but this verse covers it all.
Fear God and keep his commandments. For this is the duty of all mankind, as we heard this morning, the reason why that is important is because we know sin requires payment right.
We learn about that in the Old Testament we learn about all the sacrifices that the nation of Israel did after God shows him as His people.
All those continuing, remembering of their sin. But we had a perfect sacrifice.
Jesus Christ came down to this earth, lived as a man, had a ministry for a short period of time, about 3 years, and went and died on the cross for our sin.
He died a perfect sacrifice, so that we don't have to continually remember those sins.
They've been paid for, and we are free from that judgment.
He took that penalty for us. That's why we are here.
That's why we come to this building. We come to learn about that.
We come to teach it, we come to share it with others.
So that's all I have for this morning. One other thing I was going to do.
But again, it doesn't make sense to do it inside wouldn't be quite as quite interesting.
But I want to thank you, you kids, for coming, not just this morning, but every Sunday, for sitting there and letting your teachers talk to you and teach you, and for paying attention.
It's fantastic. It's one of the reasons why those of us that teach Center school here.
So I'll close in a word of prayer, and I'll turn it back over to Mr.
Neal, Lord, we thank you that we live in a country where we have the ability to come every Sunday freely, without persecution, and to remember the sacrifice of your son, who came to this world to die in the cross.
We understand that he may not have desired that separation from you, the bearing of all of our sins, but he submitted to your will as we read about in his prayer in the garden of Yosemite, that he submits to your will.
Thank you that he submitted to. You all. We asked that you would help us to submit also to your will and our lives, that you would bless this day, that we have to fellowship together, that you would bless those that have prepared food, and that you would be with us, and keep watch over us we ask these things in
your name. Amen. And that's nearly perfect timing.
Nearly cooked.
For that nice message, and thank you kids for participating.
I've got a hundred Culver's Butterburgers in this podium right here.
All right.