Why is it, people of God, that our own heart is not exalted? Where does salvation and praise belong? Praise to Him, salvation from Him. 1 Chronicles 16, a song of Solomon, a song of David rejoicing at the coming of the ark into Jerusalem, directs us to think upon God in relation to these things. First Chronicles 16 beginning at verse 23. Sing to the Lord all the earth. Tell of his salvation from day to day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples. For great is the Lord and greatly to be praised and he is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols, but the Lord made the heavens. Splendor and majesty are before him. Strength and joy are in his place. And then verse 35, say also, save us, O God, of our salvation, and gather and deliver us from among the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name and glory in your praise. Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting. Salvation in Him, all praise due to Him. And this is also God who hears our prayers. And people of God, we come before our God. Congregational prayer this morning. We had a note of Thanksgiving. Last week, an announcement that Fred and Angela Karsten family are expecting another child. We have another announcement of Thanksgiving along those lines, that is that the Paul and Vicki Freswick family is expecting another child. So we will include both of these babies in the womb in our prayer this morning. People of God, let us come then before him. Lord God Almighty, Maker of Heaven and Earth, there are those who seek to explain the world apart from You. They seek to explain the world through a plethora of false gods, They seek to explain the world without any God. None of this can be done. It is all a lie. It is all self-deception, a suppressing of the truth, as the Apostle has said. You are God. You are the one true God. You are the one from whom life is made. You're the one by whom this world came into existence. It is still you who gives life. Lord, this is true in the physical sense, in the spiritual sense. We have some ability now to some ability to explain how babies develop in the womb. But Lord, you're the one who holds this together, even as you hold and sustain all things. It is certainly true that you knit together in the mother's womb a child. Lord God, as we think of life in this way, be with two babies in the womb in our congregation, and the Carson family and the Freswick family, be with mother and with child, be with mothers and with children. We pray that you would bring them safely to the day of delivery. We pray, Lord God, that you would be not only with the physical life, which is upheld by you alone, but with our spiritual lives upheld by you alone. It is your hand which can comfort, your hand which can hold up, your hand which can strengthen, your hand which can change and renew and make new. So Lord uphold not only our bodies but also our souls. Uphold us here in Waupon. Uphold us wherever we may be. Two of our young men now separated from us for seasonal work or for military service, be with Andre Unstra in Hawaii, be with Thomas Koiman in Texas. May God uphold these young men, bless them in their labors, give them also true Christian fellowship even as they are apart from us. That does make us to think also upon those who are nearer and yet not able to be here. Age, disease, a combination of these things. Lord, uphold those not able to be here. We pray that you would open up avenues that they would be able to come and come speedily. In the cases of those who are most infirmed, such as our very elderly, such as a Cal and a Bernie, or such as the years-long battle with cancer which Keith has fought, we pray that you would strengthen them in that way as well, that you would give them continued measures of health. We think the same, Lord God. Again, there are other names The other names we can name and we pray that you would uphold them, strengthen them, sustain them. Lord, oh Lord, it is a year of unrest. We seem to go from one event to another. It is true in the lives of our members, being disrupted in even the way we have just spoken of and in many other ways as well. and is true on a national level. We give thanks for those who serve in every way. I think again giving thanks that you have brought Jocelyn Pousma back to us, but we think also of all those who would serve in the National Guard or in law enforcement as well. And Lord, we pray that you would bring peace to our nation, that you would bring wisdom to our nation, that you would bring understanding to our nation. Lord, time and time again we are reminded as we look at the history of the world and as we look at history unfolding before us, as we look at the events of this very year, we are reminded again and again that we are in need of you and that this whole earth groans, that the whole creation longs for consummation. Lord, come quickly. Make us to long for your coming like a bridegroom anticipates a wedding day. The only difference is we do not know the date. Although even in 2020, there are bridegrooms who don't know the date. What does all this chaos do? All this chaos points us to you, the one who created everything good and the one who can restore and will restore all things to peace and harmony again. Renewed earth, the true promised land for all your people. Lord God, bring us there. Make our hearts to desire that place. Even as we pray that you would make us faithful sojourners here below. Faithful pilgrims in our time where we are placed now. This, Lord God, is our prayer. In the name of our Savior, the One who has come once, the One who will come again, Jesus Christ. Amen. People of God, let us stand and sing, preparing to hear the Word of God. 1A. 1A. right at the beginning of the Trinity Psalter hymnal. Let's sing all the stanzas of 1A together. And there is rest to weary God from sin free strangers Who will not stand with wicked men? Who shuns the scorner saint? Faithless is he who hangs upon his portion and delight, And penitents upon that log with gladness plain. Like a tree set by the riverside, Its leaf is green, its root is sure, And thus it's worth to buy. No wicked like the crib and chaff Are strapped from off the land, they shall not gather with the dust, nor in the judgment stand. Amen. People of God, let us turn then to our text for this morning, Mark chapter 14. We'll begin reading at verse 12, and we will read to verse 25. Mark chapter 14, verses 12 to 25, page 1082. In most of the pew Bibles or chair Bibles, We continue working through the gospel of Mark. Let us hear the word of the Lord, our God. And on the first day of unleavened bread, when they sacrificed the Passover lamb, His disciples said to him, where will you have us go and prepare for you to eat the Passover? And he sent two of his disciples and said to them, go into the city and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him. And wherever he enters, say to the master of the house, the teacher says, where is my guest room where I may eat the Passover with my disciples? And he will show you. a large upper room furnished and ready. There, prepare for us. And the disciples set out and went to the city and found it just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover. And when it was evening, he came with the twelve, and as they were reclining at table and eating, Jesus said, Truly I say to you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with me. They began to be sorrowful and to say to him one after another, is it I? He said to them, it is one of the 12, one who is dipping bread into the dish with me. For the son of man goes as it is written of him. But woe to that man by whom the son of man is betrayed. It would have been better for that man if he had not been born. And as they were eating, He took bread, and after blessing it, broke it, and gave it to them, and said, take, this is my body. And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. And he said to them, this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God. so far the reading of God's Holy Word. Dear congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ, how imminent is the death of Jesus? While it is not easy to put together an exact picture of the last days of Jesus Christ, we have enough clues. We have enough clues to know this. This passage takes us into the day of the death of Jesus Christ. Now, you might say, what do you mean, takes us into the day? Isn't this, you know, from the afternoon till late at night? Doesn't the day start at midnight? No, no, no, the day doesn't start at midnight. Not according to the Jew, the day starts when the sun goes down. And the sun goes down in this passage. They go out to prepare a meal. The meal is prepared. They then come into Jerusalem, which is Which is what the Jew was to do when in Palestine you couldn't eat the meal just outside of Jerusalem. You had to go into Jerusalem to eat the Passover meal. And when was that Passover meal eaten? It would be eaten after the sacrifice of the lambs, after sundown, on the beginning of a new day. What day is this? It's the day when Jesus will institute the supper. It's the day when And Jesus will spend the night praying in the garden of Gethsemane. It's the day when He will be betrayed in that garden. It's the day when He will be put on trial, first a trial in secret and then an open trial in the daylight in public. It's the day when He will be brought to the cross. It's the day when He will be upon that cross. And it's the day when, before the sun goes down again, He will die on that cross. This passage takes us into the day of the death of Jesus Christ. And the blood of Jesus, the blood of Jesus which is sometimes been called the red thread pulls itself all the way through scriptures from Genesis to Revelation. The blood of Jesus is at the center, at the center of the sign and seal significance, both of Passover, of which this is a last Passover meal, and of the Lord's Supper, which this is the first Lord's Supper meal. The blood which will be spilled on this day. The blood of Jesus Christ signified by the spiritual meals. We'll work through this text. First we'll look at that Passover preparation, then eating the eating traitor, the eating drinking traitor who is there. And then we'll spend I think the third point will be the longest one this morning. Third point will be the supper established. So first, what is the Passover preparation? Well, what is the time? It's the time, the first day of Unleavened Bread. The Feast of Unleavened Bread has become so associated with the Feast of Passover that they sometimes overlap and sometimes the word first day of Unleavened Bread can actually be used in a couple of different ways. But it's the day when they sacrifice the Passover lamb, and that's specific. That's the one day, that's the one day when the lambs were sacrificed, when blood was spilled all throughout Jerusalem after the sun went down. And then those lambs were consumed, and you had to consume the whole lamb. Remember, that was one of the rules of Passover. And so a group of 10 to 12 people is about the right group, about the right size, where you would try to gather together to eat the whole lamb. And so the disciples are thinking, well, this is what we're going to do, right? We're going to be one of those groups of 10 or so people, and we're going to eat a whole lamb. But where are we going to do this? We've been staying in Bethany. That's the picture we get in the Gospels. Jesus goes to the temple, and he teaches day by day. And then they go, and they spend the night In Bethany, two miles out where it's safer, and then they come back into Jerusalem. Well, now this night they have to be in Jerusalem. They can't be in Bethany anymore. And so there's an issue which has come up. There's a problem. Where are we gonna get our lamb? Where are we gonna find a room in Jerusalem to eat and partake? So they ask a legitimate question. And Jesus says, there will be provision. Doesn't explicitly say that this is a miracle, but the disciples were with Jesus so much. It's hard to imagine how he could have arranged this without the disciples knowing. No, every implication is that this is another example of divine foreknowledge, a divine, we might say, we could use the word prophecy. There are actually three prophecies in this text then, one for each point perhaps. Those who are a little younger can look for those. What's the one prophecy in each of the three points? Well, this is the prophecy of the first point that they will go and they will find a man carrying a water jar and that's going to be pretty significant. You might say, aren't there all kinds of people? Aren't there all kinds of guys walking around carrying water jars? Culturally, it was the woman who almost always carried the water jar. Think of the woman at the well in the Gospel of John. So to find a man carrying a water jar, well, that's actually going to be pretty unusual. So you've got to find a man carrying a water jar. You're going to go out and you've got to find him. So they do. They go out and find a man carrying a water jar. And then they follow this man to the house where he ends up. And then when this man, this servant, ends up at the house where he's carrying the water, then they go in and they ask the master. And the master's gonna say, yes, I have a room prepared for you. And it's gonna be a big room. It's gonna be all ready. It's gonna be fully furnished. And it's for you. See, there was divine prophecy. Even this reminds us of the triumphal entry. The triumphal entry. just some time ago when there was divine foreknowledge of a donkey that would be ready to carry in the king. Well, here there is a room that will be ready. Ready for a supper which is both a last Passover and a first Lord's Supper. And so the disciples set out and they found it just as he had told them, verse 16. And then they prepared the Passover. Prepared the Passover. What does that include? Well, Exodus chapter 12 tells us a number of things. We had a sermon on Exodus 12 a few months ago. Remember some of the details? Bitter herbs, Exodus 12 verse 8, what is that? It's a reminder of the bitterness of slavery, the bitterness of what we must come out of to come into fellowship with Jesus Christ. The unleavened bread itself, a reminder of the need to depart from bondage with haste. In some ways that's anticipating this evening's sermon. Flee from idolatry, that constant theme throughout scripture. Run, run from sin, run now. Flee away from that which is bitter. Flee away from that which is bondage and flee to Jesus Christ and salvation in God. And then of course, the lamb, the lamb itself. And a few months ago when we were in Exodus 12, if you remember, we went through a list of at least seven points of similarity between the first paschal lamb and the one who is the Passover lamb, Jesus Christ. Let's do just three of those seven now. Fire would burn the lamb. The lamb had to be cooked. The lamb had to be cooked in a certain way. just as the lamb, the Passover lamb was cooked in a fire, so the fire of God's judgment would be upon the lamb, Jesus Christ. The lamb had to be a lamb without spot or blemish, a symbol of perfection. It couldn't have a broken bone, couldn't have discoloration, it had to be an unblemished lamb. What is that a symbol of? That's the symbol of the one lamb who is without sin, who can take sin away, Jesus Christ. And of course you cannot kill the lamb and cook the lamb without blood being spilled. And on this night, on Passover night, The beginning of the day, because the day begins when the sun goes down, there were many, many lambs killed in Jerusalem. Blood flowed in Jerusalem on this night. Jesus says the blood of lambs would be spilled. The blood of the lamb will be dripping on the cross before the day is over. And the blood dripping on the cross is the blood of forgiveness of sins, where life is found just as the blood on the doorposts in Egypt so long ago were where life was had, where death was avoided for others. Jesus Christ is the Passover lamp It is no accident that this is the night which begins the day of the death of Jesus Christ. There is no accident. God has providentially arranged all things. This is the day of the death of Jesus Christ. People of God, what are some applications then that come flowing out of this text? Well one thing is the importance of often unnoticed acts of service. I don't quite want to say something as simple as clean your room, but did this master of the house know what the room would be used for? Did this servant carrying the water know how important his carrying of a water jug would be? People of God, ordinary, we might say, acts of service, ordinary everyday actions, do not usually take the importance of this servant carrying a water jug, do not usually take the importance of this master preparing this room on this night. What unnoticed acts of service might be used way, way beyond what you imagine? What everyday service, what action performed, seen by others who know that you are a Christian might be a witness? What care of of the place where you live, and that's where I come to, I hesitate to say something as simple as clean your room, but what care of the place where you live will serve an important role? And we don't want to take this too far, but people of God, ordinarily unnoticed acts of service can be used in very important ways. That has to do with the room being prepared, the room which Jesus supernaturally knew of. Something else is we might say a deeper application. Remember that it is no accident, God orchestrated history, that this day with all these specific symbols. The Passover feast, more than the others, pointed to Jesus Christ in a way that it did so so clearly. It's no accident that God orchestrated all things so that this would all happen on this day, during the time of Passover, during this very day, in these very hours. Orchestrating that this ordinarily unseen act of service, that this room would be ready, orchestrating that, and Jesus would go there. All these things, how many times do the timing of events in your life not seem to make sense? Not seem to have a purpose? Remember people of God that God who watches over all things and brought history to this central moment in the central act of Jesus Christ on the cross and is directing all things to his now second coming. The same God who watches over all things and directed all these details in such a particular way also watches over the timing of events in your life. It's the same God. Now sometimes it's very easy to see. such as on this night, when it is plain to see the connections between Exodus 12, going all the way back, and how all these symbols are looking forward to Jesus Christ, and we can look at it, and the more we look, the more we see, I see why God orchestrated it this way, at this time, for His Son to die on the cross on this day. In our lives, it's not usually as obvious, but it's the same God who watches over all things, who has control of all timing. of all events. God is always the one in control. And this is especially clear in that central event of Jesus Christ dying on the cross for sinners, for all who believe and trust in Him. It is also true in the events of your own lives. There was an eating traitor at this meal. It is an evening with the twelve. They're sitting, they're eating, and Jesus says, one of you will betray me. Notice They then ask an important question, not merely as a group, not twelve voices in unison, but each one individually, going around the table. Is it I? Is it I? Is it I? Is it I? It's even appropriate that such a question would be asked before participating in Passover in the Lord's Supper being instituted as we'll see in our third point. Does not the Apostle speak about this so clearly and then following the direction which we have in Corinthians We have four different forms for the celebration of the Lord's Supper. All four of them, some with more details, some with less, but all four of them speak about the need to examine ourselves. To ask a question such as the question, is it I? Such as the question, would I be one who's not faithfully serving? Would I be one who would rather be a betrayer of my Savior? And so, for example, first paragraph on page 53 and then notice all the references to 1 Corinthians 11. Brothers and sisters, you who desire to come to the Holy Communion of the body and blood of our Savior must consider how the Apostle Paul exhorts us diligently to examine ourselves before we eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 1 Corinthians 11, 28. For as the benefit of this sacred meal is great if we receive the sacrament with a penitent heart and with a lively faith, so it is the great danger if we receive it in an unworthy manner. 1 Corinthians 11.27. For then we are guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. 1 Corinthians 11.27. We eat and drink to our own judgment. 1 Corinthians 11.29. And we kindle then God's wrath against us. 1 Corinthians 11.30. But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged by the Lord. 1 Corinthians 11.31 and 32. Therefore, truly repent of your sins, place a lively and steadfast faith in Christ our Savior and live in love with all people, so that you would be worthy partakers of this holy sacrament. On that first night it was a very particular, is it I, but a very specific betrayal that would soon take place. All four of the Gospels speak about this, each giving slightly different details, helping us to understand what was going on. Matthew even tells us that Judas specifically asks Is it I, Rabbi? And Jesus said to him, you have said so. Now it's been pointed out that that's a vague enough phrase, especially in the Greek, that when Jesus said that, even if all 12 heard it, they wouldn't have necessarily understood. There would have still been some Is Jesus really saying what I think he's saying? But it was clear enough that, as D. A. Carson said, it would have given Judas a jolt. It was a searching term. It was a, yes, I know, but said with a certain vagueness so that Judas could almost be trembling, like, wait, how much does Jesus know? Of course, Judas should know. This is the same Jesus who can heal the broken limbs, who can heal and cleanse the spots of the leper, who has said that when you go out to find a donkey for my triumphal entry, you will find it, who has said that when you go out to find the room for this very meal, you will find it. Really, Judas knows that Jesus knows, doesn't he? And so it is for everyone who would betray the Lord. It comes back to how the Apostle says it very broadly, true for all men, all suppress the truth in unrighteousness. This is true for Judas on the night of the betrayal, this is true for all who run from Jesus. They can say, they can say with apparent confidence that they know that God will not judge them, that they know, and that comes in all kinds of forms, right? Like, God exists, but he's not gonna judge me. God doesn't exist at all. I can declare my own truth. It comes in all kinds of different forms, right? That one would run away from Jesus, but in their heart, like Judas, they know that Jesus knows. And yet they betray him anyway. Because that is the heart of man. Whether you are reading Romans 1, or you're sitting at the table, dipping the bread in the common cup. So again, when Jesus says, it's the one who dips the bread in the cup with me, well, that's vague. They're all doing that. All 12 of them are doing that. So on the one hand, he's He is having the faithful 11 to search themselves. That's something we are all called to do, 1 Corinthians 11. But on the other hand, Judas knows that Jesus knows. If you are running from God, if you have a hypocritical heart which you can hide from those sitting around you, you cannot hide it from Jesus. And you know that Jesus knows. Repent and believe. Be searched and know Jesus does search your very soul. Repent and believe. Turn to Him. Betray Him not, but rather rejoice in who He is and what He has done. Because His blood is spilled for sinners when we confess His blood is spilled for our life when we trust in Him. Do not run from Him. Do not betray Him. He is the Son of Mary. He can die a physical death. He has a physical body. He is, of course, also the Son of Man. which we have spoken of a number of times as we've worked through Mark. He's the son of man who is also divine, who will come again in the clouds, who will not be held by the grave. And so he institutes the supper because his coming brings something new. His coming brings something new. What is that something new? It's his own body. It's his own blood. Lambs have just been sacrificed within the last hour. It will be so no more. Blood will no longer, the blood of lambs will no longer need to run in the streets of Jerusalem or anywhere else. And lambs and goats, they were never enough to satisfy anyway. They were all just looking for this one blood, this new blood, the blood which really does bring forgiveness, the blood of Jesus. And that's what this is all about. As they were eating, he took the bread and broke it and gave it to them and said, this is my body. In other words, we're no longer having the flowing blood of the lambs anticipating me. We now have bread and wine which looks back at what I have done. I am instituting this because on this day, this will no longer be something foresignified. It will be something which is completed. It is new because it is completed in me. Blood which is two very important aspects to it. Blood which is tied to the covenant, Exodus chapter 24. Blood which is tied to atonement for your souls, Leviticus 17, 11. Blood which is tied to the forgiveness of sins, Hebrews 9, 22. And Jesus brings this all together. First Peter 2, 24, he himself bore our sins in his body on the tree that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed." Covenant, redemption, all these things pulled together, all of them completed in the blood of Christ. And that is what is new. The promises do not change, the promises are not new, the promises are fulfilled. The only thing new is the blood of Jesus, that the covenant is now sealed. The sign now looks back rather than looking forward. It was always about the same thing, and faith was always rooted in the same one. It was the faith of Abraham. The faith of Abraham was in Christ. Galatians 3. What is the faith of those who are the sons of Abraham? It's faith in Christ. Galatians 3. A handful of verses from that chapter. Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. Verses 13 and 14. Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, becoming a curse for us, for it is written, cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree, so that in Christ Jesus, the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles so that we might receive the promised spirit through faith. Passover looks forward to him. The Lord's Supper will now look back upon him. It is new because it is now completed, but the promises are always the same. And the faith of Abraham was faith in Christ, and so we who have faith in Christ are sons, spiritual sons of Abraham. Spiritual sons and daughters according to the promise, the promise which never changed but is only here, now, finally fulfilled. this language of what is changing and what is not changing. It's actually the Westminster Confession of Faith which summarizes that. It's page 924 in the back of the Trinity Psalter hymnals, 7.5 and 6. This covenant was differently administered in the time of the law and in the time of the gospel. Under the law, it was administered by promises, prophecies, sacrifices, circumcision, the Paschal Lamb, and other types and ordinances delivered to the people of the Jews, all for signifying Christ. We no longer have something which for signifies, we now have something which post signifies, which looks back upon. Under the gospel, when Christ the substance was exhibited, the ordinance, in which this covenant is dispensed are the preaching of the word and the administration of the sacraments now of baptism in the Lord's Supper, which though fewer in number and administered with more simplicity." You know, when we celebrate the Lord's Supper, I'm not standing there in the full high priest ephod and, you know, there's not an altar in the temple which has the holy of holies behind it and the spilling and sprinkling of blood. I mean, wow, there's a lot going on there. The Lord's Supper is simple. Why is it simple? Because it's not trying to foresignify something. It's not trying to look towards something and anticipate what that something, that someone was. It's now all been completed. We can now have something simple which simply looks back. now administer with more simplicity in less outward glory, yet in them it is held forth in more fullness. Evidence and spiritual efficacy to all nations, both Jews and Gentiles, and is now called the New Testament. There are therefore not essentially two covenants of grace, but one and the same, though it has various dispensations, various dispensations, different administrations, the same promise. Everything centered upon Christ and His blood, which is now spilled on this day. I didn't explicitly talk about the second prophecy, but did you see what the second prophecy was? Jesus knew He would be betrayed. That's the second prophecy. There's a third prophecy and a third meal in this passage. Do you see the third prophecy and the third meal? We have not only the Passover, the last Passover, and the Lord's Supper, the first Lord's Supper, we also have a prophecy of and in anticipation of the marriage feast of the land. Do you see that in our final verse? Truly I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God. Jesus is going to die. He's going to die this day. He's not again going to drink. He's not going to share another meal with his disciples on earth. but He is going to share the marriage feasts of the Lamb with them. There's a third meal, there's yet a greater meal, where it's no longer looking forward to Christ or looking back upon what Christ has done, but it is not just twelve disciples eating with Jesus, including one who was a betrayer, but every faithful disciple of every time, of every place, of every tongue, celebrating, eating with Him. Revelation 19, beginning at verse 6, And then I heard what seems to be the voice of the great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty pearls of thunder, crying out, hallelujah for the Lord our God, the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exalt and give him the glory for the marriage of the Lamb has come and his bride has made herself ready. It is granted to her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure. For the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. And the angel said to me, write this, blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb. There's going to be no betrayer. There will not be eleven faithful. There will be every faithful of every tribe and tongue. Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he said to me, these are the true words of God. And then I fell down to worship Him. You see the third prophecy? I'm gonna die. I'm not gonna eat with you again on this earth, but I am gonna eat with you again on that feast which is not only greater than the Passover, and the Lord's Supper is greater than the Passover. It's more simple in how we do it, but it's greater because it looks back at the fullness of what is done, and we know that so clearly. It is so clearly outlined for us in the Word of God, but this is gonna be so much even greater than that. To go from the Passover to the Lord's Supper is a great thing. To go from the Lord's Supper to the marriage feasts of the Lamb is an even greater thing. And we will all eat with Jesus there. You say, I have no invitation. I am a betrayer. I am not faithful to my Lord and Savior. You are hearing the preaching of the good news now. The fate of Judas was sealed. God prophesied correctly that he would not repent. But if you have thoughts of betrayal, of rebellion in your heart, you are not Judas Iscariot. It is not too late. There is an invitation to all, to the marriage, feast, of the Lamb, a marriage feast without any traitors. Revelation 3 verse 20, Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come to him and eat with him and he with me. Repent. Believe. Your sins are then forgiven. Your invitation to the marriage feast of the Lamb is sealed. Amen. Let us pray.