the covenant ratification meal. We will participate, partake in that a week from today. This isn't something that old bald-headed men came up, and this would be a nice thing to do. We can make this liturgy, and it'll be full of pomp and circumstance. No, that's not where we get communion. We get communion from the hand of a loving God who made us in his image, foreordained us to be his children. He gives us that for this horizontal relationship, one with another. This isn't like the crowd at a football game. Anybody knows that? Good. A couple of people did. This is to be. In the family of God, a part of the family of God, yes, we get, we also give the smile and all those things that come not as, you know, as the radio and TV evangelists, they say, give me your money. That's not that we come and we give to one another in little ways, practical ways, a smile, a handshake, a prayer for one another. We come then to a communion meal, the very first Passover. And I'm going to ask you to remember this. Some of you may not, I don't know. Uh, if you don't, uh, look back at, uh, Exodus 12, the Passover meal as they're leaving Egypt and chapter 19. I ought to look at those, but we'll not, I'm going to, let me make some assumptions here. that we can jump to a little bit of a summary of that. Promises were made. God made promises to Moses and through Moses. Sacrifices were made. Meals were eaten. And so often those sacrificial meals were eaten as the sacrifice was eaten in the sacrament. And what's that about? We are internalizing. We're taking into ourselves, internalizing not just in our abdomens, but in our minds and hearts, internalizing the sacrifice which Christ made of himself for us. And then there is in the covenants a promissory oath. It restates the covenant. with its blessing for obedience, but a curse for violating the covenant. And then there is a benediction upon obedient covenant keepers. There is so much to say, and I am so inadequate for that. Let's look at Genesis chapter 14. My fingers are so dry, I have a hard time turning the pages. It's not that I don't know where Genesis is, OK? Sorry. Just a second. Yeah, okay, if you get your eye on the right verse, it'll help. Verse 18, Genesis 14, 18. Abraham's nephew, Lot, and all the bad stuff that happened, right, and the attack half a dozen kings create war. King of Sodom went out to meet them. Then after the war Melchizedek, now who is he? What's he got to do with what we're going to do a week from today? Melchizedek, king of Salem. Now that was a province or a state, a small state. What's Salem? Jerusalem. He was king of Jerusalem. Isn't that interesting? Jerusalem is central this far back. Melchizedek king of Salem brought out, what does your text say? Bread and wine. Hmm. First covenant meal, last covenant meal in Heaven. What we're doing next week? Bread and wine, he was priest of God most high. They are having communion under the constituted authority of the church. Not because Israel had set this guy up. God anointed, appointed Melchizedek as a leader of his people to bring the gospel. And he blessed him verse 19 and said, blessed be Abraham or Abram of God, most high possessor of heaven and earth. And it goes both ways. See this blessed be God most high who has delivered your enemies into your hand. Okay. So this is Genesis pretty early, right? What's this talking about? Who delivered you from the enemy of your soul? God Most High. Who was the active agent in that? Jesus Christ in his earthly ministry, his keeping the law perfectly, his dying for sin, his taking our sin and putting it on his account. We have here. He's delivered your enemy into your hand, Christ's victory over Satan. It is terribly important. Some of you are old enough, you have seen some of those old B-movie westerns, and there's always some guy gets shot, right? And he always says, they got me. Remember those? Really corny. That's not how Jesus died. He shouted, it's accomplished. It's completed. The penalty is paid. The people are assured. It's accomplished. And so we don't add to our salvation, but we live a life of gratitude and thanks to him who died for us in large part by loving people for whom Christ came. Loving. giving, caring for people made in his image. And still in verse 20, and he, Abraham gave him a tithe of all. What's that about? Well, remember Abram gave back all this, all the stuff that they had taken. It is reaching out in ministry of mercy, some practical things. He gave him a tithe of all that, that Abraham had. To this one who is a priest of God most high. You have the bread and wine there, which we, of which we will partake in a week. Um, yes. Would you turn please to Genesis chapter 31. We'll see Genesis chapter 31 beginning at verse 25. So, uh, Jacob has been tending his father-in-law's flocks and, uh, left the old man with nothing. And Jacob had it all. And then he runs off taking this other man's Well, his wives, after all, that was legit. He overtook Jacob in the mountains and Laban with his brethren pitched their tents in the valley. Laban said to Abraham, what have you done? You have stolen away, unknown to me, sneaked off in the night, carried my daughters like captives, taken with the sword. Here is an unhappy father-in-law. Why did you flee away secretly and steal from me and not tell me? You didn't allow me to kiss my sons and my daughters. You have done foolishly in so doing for it is in my power to do you harm. But the God of your father spoke to me last night saying, Be careful what you speak to Jacob, neither bad nor good. He says, why do you steal my gods? It's teraphim, it's household idols. And in my version, the word gods is with a small g, and that is correct. This is not elevating anything to be God, but falsely so-called. Okay, we'll wrap. Verse 44, now come, he's given orders, let us make a covenant, you and I, and let it be a witness between you and me. They set up a stone and a marker and they ate there on the heap. What we are doing in communion is ratifying the covenant God has already made. It's a covenant of blood, the blood of Christ. We celebrate him, uh, in the, the breaking of the bread, the sharing of the cup that shed blood of Jesus Christ. Um, they offered a sacrifice first 54. called his brothers to eat bread and they ate bread. They stayed together. Watch that. Bread of life broken for you. This is covenant ratification there will be more to come in the next few weeks that may be a threat instead of a promise I don't know. But we are looking then at what we do in the context of eternity, what we do in context of the great God that of the Old Testament and of the new Jesus Christ, King of Kings, who establishes a relationship with us. And I will hope to get to that a little quicker next Sabbath evening. Come on out if you're tough enough.