The glorious mystery of the Church

Well, thank you very much for your warm welcome and prayers. It was great to be away in Blackpool. I know I'm deeply grateful to my church for supporting me to go, and I'm sure Mark is to you. He's become a good friend. Whether it's spending 19 hours on a plane or six hours in a van to Blackpool, he's always good to talk to. And it's a blessing to know him as a fellow minister in the gospel, and you are blessed to have a man like him as a pastor. And yeah, it was good, so thank you. Please do turn back to Ephesians 3.

You'll find it on page 1174 if you're using one of the church Bibles. And you should have a handout as well, which is just an outline of where we're going. Let me just pray before we look at it together.

Father, our prayer is what we've just sung, that you will speak to us as we come to receive the food of your holy words. We pray in light of Ephesians 3 that you will speak until your church is built and the earth is full of your glory. We ask in Jesus' name. Amen. Murder mysteries seem to be really big business at the moment, whether it's TV shows or books. There is no end of them. You've got Death in Paradise. You've got the Marlowe Murders.

You've got the Thursday Murder Club, Knives Out, the Strike novels, reboots of Poirot. I could go on and on. And I wonder if you ever think that God is running this world, his church, your life, like a murder mystery. If I just share with you the past couple of weeks for us as a family, we've had an unexpected family bereavement. We've had a plumbing emergency. We've had a car accident. We've had one car, the other car, fell its MOT. We've had the dog got an ear infection.

And if plumbers and mechanics are expensive, vets go to a whole other level. And then you've got the church. There are painful pastoral issues. There are people grumbling about stuff that doesn't actually seem related to the gospel. They just don't like the tea and coffee. People leave church. People step back from ministries. It makes me feel sometimes like doing what the four non-blondes told me to do in the 90s, scream from the top of my lungs, what's going on?

And if you're not sure what that is a reference to, just try it. Scream from the top of your lungs, what's going on? It's very cathartic. Now, whilst you might say, that's a tough couple of weeks, and it has been unusually intense, it's not unusual in life, is it?

This is life for most of us. Cars failing MOTs, accidents, house emergencies, unexpected tragedies. It's life. And sometimes it feels like a murder mystery.

You can't guess why it's happened, who did it, why they did it, how they did it. But it does feel like the author is having lots of fun surprising you, whilst never quite giving you enough to know what's really going on.

Is that what God is doing? Is life, is church, just a bit of a mystery, a puzzle that can never be solved? Well, Paul talks a lot there about mystery in Ephesians 3, doesn't he?

He mentions it four times in the passage we've just read. Verse 3, it's the mystery made known.

Verse 4, it's the mystery of Christ. Verse 6, it's the mystery through the gospel.

Verse 9, he talks about the administration of this mystery. And he's already talked about it back in chapter 1, verse 9. He talks about the mystery of God's will. Paul is talking about the mystery of what God is doing in the world, throughout history, globally, locally, individually. But he says it's not a mystery to be solved or to be cracked.

It's a mystery that has been revealed. It's a mystery that is being displayed on the earth and to the heavens. It's a mystery that's to give you confidence. It's a mystery that's supposed to control your thoughts and your emotions and the way you react to things that go on in this world and in your life. And it's a mystery he wants you to give yourself wholeheartedly to because it's a mystery that is declaring the glory of God in his wisdom and his grace. And so first, Paul says this is a mystery that has been revealed.

Look there at verse 3. The mystery made known to me by revelation as I have already written briefly. In reading this then, you are able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ which was not made known to people in other generations as it has been revealed by the Spirit to God's holy apostles and prophets. Paul is being really clear here. This is a mystery that Paul understands but not because he worked it out. It's not because he put all the pieces together, took a step back and went, oh, okay, I get it now. It's not like death in paradise where the lead detective, something triggers a thought in his mind and suddenly in his brain it all makes sense and he suddenly shouts, right, gather the suspects. Now, Paul would never have worked this out on his own.

It had to be revealed to him. It's really clear here, this is a mystery that Paul understands, but not because he worked it out. It's not because he put all the pieces together, took a step back and went, oh, OK, I get it now. It's not like death in paradise, where the lead detective, something triggers a thought in his mind, and suddenly in his brain it all makes sense, and he suddenly shouts, right, gather the suspects. No, Paul would never have worked this out on his own. It had to be revealed to him. If you think about it, how does a monotheistic, ultra-orthodox Jew, who is absolutely determined to wipe out the church, he's so determined to wipe out the church, he goes from town to town arresting and torturing and persecuting and imprisoning people. How does a man like that suddenly go, verse 7, to being a servant of the gospel?

Well, we know, don't we, verse 5, it's by the Holy Spirit. It's because God stopped Paul in his tracks. Quite literally, on the road to Damascus, he stops him, and he reveals this mystery to Paul. He reveals it in a way that not only does it save Paul, but it appoints Paul as an apostle, and he goes and reveals this mystery to the whole world. Verse 4, in reading this, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, which was not made known to people in other generations, as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God's holy apostles and prophets.

See, Paul says this wasn't known by previous generations. All the generations that came before the time of Jesus, they did not know this mystery, they did not understand this mystery. Why? Because God, by his Spirit, hadn't yet revealed it. Now, he says, that revelation has happened.

That revelation has taken place as God sends his Spirit. The mystery is revealed to the apostles and to the prophets, and they wrote that mystery down in the pages of Scripture that you now have open in front of you. And that means that as you read the pages of Scripture, that same Spirit who revealed it to the people who wrote these things down, he opens our minds and he opens our hearts so that we can see and understand this mystery so that we believe in it and we're saved by it and we can rejoice in it. Amen? So we can know what God is doing in the world.

It's not a puzzle to be cracked or a mystery to be solved. It's been revealed. We can only understand it as God reveals it to us by his Spirit in his words. So it's just worth reminding ourselves that's why the Bible must be the central thing of what we do as a church as we gather together, whether that's Sunday by Sunday or when we gather together during the week.

The Bible is the crucial part of our life together because that's where we read about the God who planned and accomplished this mystery. It is where we learn what this mystery is and how we receive it and how we live in the light of it. It's why the Bible must be part of our sharing our faith, our evangelism. We've got to open God's Word with people because it's only God's Word shared in the power of God's Spirit that people will ever come to see and know the mystery and to trust in it. It's why you'll never persuade someone of the mystery of the Gospel by yourself. No one will ever work this out by themselves because it's got nothing to do with education or intellect or powers of persuasion. I've recently been reading through One Corinthians in my own quiet time in the mornings. And Paul says something very similar about this in chapter 2 of One Corinthians, verse 6.

You don't need to turn to it, I'll read it to you. But he says in One Corinthians 2, verse 6, he says, We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age who are coming to nothing.

No, we declare God's wisdom a mystery, there's the word again, that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. However, as it is written, what no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived, the things God has prepared for those who love him, these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. It can only be a revelation of the Spirit. Now that truth should both humble us and encourage us.

It will humble us because we know that someone coming to faith is never the result of our persuasive arguments or clever intellect. That humbles us, but that same thing also encourages us that we don't have to worry about someone coming to faith on the basis of our clever intellect or persuasive arguments. It's a good job. But it is solely dependent on God and his irresistible power and on his wonderful grace.

As we speak the mystery to them, God opens people's hearts and minds in the power of his Spirit. If we truly understand that, it will drive us to our knees in prayer. It's what it did for Paul. Ephesians 1 verse 16, he tells them, I have not stopped remembering you in my prayers.

Ephesians 3 verse 14, the result of him talking about the mystery is that he says, for this reason, because of the mystery, I kneel before the Father. We pray that the God. Which if we truly understand that, it will drive us to our knees in prayer. That's what it did for Paul. Ephesians 1 verse 16, he tells them, I have not stopped remembering you in my prayers.

Ephesians 3 verse 14, the result of him talking about the mystery, is that he says, for this reason, because of the mystery, I kneel before the Father. We pray that the God of all grace will reveal this mystery to men and women in the power of his spirit. I said that knowing this mystery will control how we live in this world. It will control how we respond to the things that go on in this world. It should show us what we should give our lives to, and one of those things is prayer. If this mystery is only revealed by God in the power of his spirit, then the extent to which we truly believe that, the extent to which we're really concerned about that, will be revealed in our prayers. We'll be shown in how we make the most of the opportunities to gather together with God's people to pray. Praying that as we do, God would reveal this mystery to people by his spirit.

Mystery revealed, and then verse 6, the mystery defined. The mystery is that through the gospel, the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus. What is the mystery that is being revealed? The mystery is that men and women from every nation and every people group and every ethnic group, Jews and Gentiles, through the gospel, are being brought together as the one people of God, one body who share in the same promises, who look forward to enjoying the same inheritance, forgiven, adopted, made sons and daughters, gathered, united, being made holy, enjoying eternal life, ready to inherit the new creation, and it doesn't matter if you're Jew or Gentile, whether you're Jew or not a Jew, you can receive this oneness by the same gospel, which points you to the same savior through whom you become members of the one body, the one people of God. That is glorious, isn't it? Worth an amen? For some of you. I'm going to have to work on that, we've got a few more to come.

And you can see how this flows from what Paul first said about the mystery back in chapter 1. If you look back to chapter 1 and verse 9, chapter 1 verse 9, he says, God made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. So he's saying the mystery is God's purpose, his purpose which chapter 1 verse 4, he's had since before the foundation of the world, his purpose was to unite all things in heaven and on earth, everything and everyone united together in Jesus.

This mystery, says Paul, is God's eternal plan and his cosmic plan and his global plan and his historic plan and his present plan and his future plan and his individual plan and his one and only plan to unite heaven and earth in Jesus. How does he do that? Well look a bit further down of chapter 1 verse 13, you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of the truth, the gospel of your salvation when you believed you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit.

It's the same as what he says in chapter 3 verse 6, it's the gospel of salvation. How does he unite people, heaven and earth together in Jesus? It's through the gospel and the gospel is good news. What is the good news about? Well he gets to that in chapter 2, chapter 2 verse 13, he says, but now in Christ Jesus you who were once far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ for he himself is our peace who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, setting it aside in his flesh, sorry by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations, his purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two thus making peace and in the one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross by which he put to death their hostility.

The good news is that through the blood of Jesus shed on the cross we can have peace with God and therefore peace with one another, joined together with his people, made the one new humanity, not Jews joined to Gentiles, not Gentiles joined to Jews, but Jews and Gentiles together joined to the Lord Jesus and they become one new people, one new humanity, the people of God. You see, it wasn't plan A, Garden of Eden, plan B, nation of Israel, okay, let's move to plan C, the church. Now Ephesians 2 verse 15, he says,.

Jews and Gentiles together joined to the Lord Jesus, and they become one new people, one new humanity, the people of God. You see, it wasn't plan A, Garden of Eden, plan B, nation of Israel, okay, let's move to plan C, the church. Now Ephesians 2 verse 15, he says that his purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two.

The plan has always been Jesus' incarnation, cross, crucifixion, empty tomb, resurrection, ascension, sending of the Spirit, through which God calls together the one people of God where they will one day live with God in the new creation. God's plan has always been one people chosen, called out, forgiven, loved, secure, worshiping into eternity. It's worth another amen. God's plan for this broken, hostile world, his great peace plan is the church, and that's it. Now look, you need to look at the events of the world through that truth.

Many Christians I meet still act and react and think as if God's purpose is just a big mystery that he's not revealed to us yet. You see, this should control how you understand and respond to events that are going on in the Middle East at the moment, about Gaza and the Jewish people and whatever else comes up in relation to that. How are Jews and Palestinians ever going to experience true peace, or how is any other nation going to do it, or any other community, or any other village or estate? Ephesians 2 verse 14, he himself is our peace who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility.

It's only going to be found through Jesus in this one new humanity. So there you go, Middle East sorted, nationalism.

Lots of debating and flag-waving going on in the country at the moment about Britishness. I didn't come through the village. I don't know if you've got lots of Union Jacks up or if someone's taken them down or someone's put them back up or whatever it is. But whether you are a follower, if you are a follower of Jesus before you are anything else, you are a Christian.

Some of us, we come from different countries. We want to preserve our cultural identity. Before we are anything else, we are a Christian. We are part of the one new humanity. Our identity is in him, not our ethnic or cultural heritage. So celebrate, celebrate the diversity God blesses us with as humans.

Celebrate the good that is in our cultures and share it with others. But remember, as we do, before we are English or African or Asian or anything else, we are above all things a Christian.

We are a child of God. We are one of the third race. We are the new race. We are the people of God. And therefore, the cause of his gospel and the cause of the church is the thing that we should be most passionate about and most concerned about. There you go. We've dealt with the Middle East. We've dealt with nationalism, individualism.

Your salvation is not just about you and God. God did not save you to live out your new life in a way that makes you happy and is on your own terms. He saved you and he made you part of his people. He joined you to his body, which this side of heaven, this side of glory, is realised through being part of a local church, which is not about me and my preferences. It's not about only being around the people that I get on with, that are like me. And it means that I can't just disengage or walk away when it's not ticking all of my boxes. But the local church is the place where this oneness is displayed and enjoyed.

It's where the reality of it is experienced. It's the place where we grow in our knowledge and love and likeness of Jesus. It's the place where we serve and support our brothers and sisters. It's the place where the glory of the gospel is displayed before the world. That's something we're going to celebrate in communion later on. The local church, blood-bought gift of God's grace. Think about that. The local church is a blood-bought gift of God's grace.

That's why Paul goes on to say in chapter 4 that we need to be completely humble and gentle, patient, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. That's the mystery revealed. The mystery's been explained or defined. Verses 7 to 9, the mystery is administered.

Now, I'm not going to say too much about this because I think this is what Paul goes on to talk about in Ephesians 4. But we've seen that the mystery is revealed as the apostles, including Paul, administer this mystery to others.

Verse 8, it's as they preach it. of the Spirit through the bond of peace. That's the mystery revealed. The mystery has been explained or defined. Verses 7 to 9, the mystery is administered.

Now, I'm not going to say too much about this because I think this is what Paul goes on to talk about in Ephesians 4. But we've seen that the mystery is revealed as the apostles, including Paul, administer this mystery to others.

Verse 8, it's as they preach it to the Gentiles that the Gentiles can see the mystery and receive the blessings of the mystery, which is, he says, the boundless riches of Christ. But it's worth noting, isn't it, that he thinks it's an absolute honour to administer this mystery.

It's an absolute privilege. In fact, verse 8, he can't quite believe that God has used someone like him to do such a glorious thing. It is to him, verse 7, a gift of God's grace. And it's why, verses 1 and 13, he is not discouraged and he is not ashamed and he's not frustrated one little bit about the fact that administering this mystery has landed him in prison, has got him a death sentence. Why would he be? Because he can see what happens as the mystery is revealed as the gospel is preached. He sees that people are saved and people are united and God is glorified. And not just on the earth, but verse 10, glorified in the heavenly places.

Which moves us on to our final point, the mystery is displayed. So we've heard this definition of this mystery.

You can say, OK, I understand that the mystery is that through the gospel, through the blood of the Lord Jesus, God unites men and women to him and with one another. Great. What does that actually look like in reality? What does that look like in my life day by day? How do people see this? The answer is, you ready? It's the church. Sorry, the church.

My church. Are you sure? Crock and Hill? Elmstead? That's where this mystery is displayed? God's great, eternal, glorious only plan is displayed in here? Yeah. Because how is it displayed?

It's displayed as men and women from every part of the world, throughout every period of history, hear the gospel, trust in Jesus, and are then gathered together in local churches to love and serve one another and celebrate with one another the peace they have with God and through God with each other. And that declares to the whole world the wisdom and the power and the glory of God's grace. That is true of the local church. It's true of the global church. It includes you guys here at Crock and Hill, but it's not limited to you guys here at Crock and Hill, and it's not complete with just Crock and Hill. It includes the brothers and sisters that have gone before you at Crock and Hill, who have already gone ahead of you into glory. It includes the brothers and sisters at Elmstead and Cold Harbor and Novar and the Slade and FIEC churches across Britain and other faithful churches in other denominations, not just across Britain, but across the entire globe. It includes brothers and sisters in history, the apostles and the prophets, the early church fathers.

It's why it was so great to look at the Nicene Creed in the last five churches meeting. And the next five churches meeting, right, Sunday evening, I get, it's a faff to come from here to Elmstead at five o'clock in the evening and then to get back again. Why would you bother doing it? Because you're doing this. Gathering together with brothers and sisters from other churches saying, we are one in the Lord Jesus and we're going to celebrate his grace and we're going to display this mystery. It was the reformers, it was the Puritans, it's well-known Christians of history and ones that now nobody ever remembers. All of us together throughout history across the globe displaying the glory of the mystery of God and not just on the earth, even in the heavenly places. Now let's think about that for a moment.

This phrase heavenly places is used several times by Paul in Ephesians. It includes the angels in heaven, but it also includes Satan and his demons. See that in Ephesians 6. You see what Paul is saying? Paul is saying angels look at the church and they go, wow, that's amazing. Look at what God did with those people.

That's incredible. And a result of what they see in the church, they worship God. Now imagine just for a moment what angels have actually witnessed.

They've witnessed creation. They've witnessed the exodus. Isaiah, they're gathered around the throne of God declaring, holy, holy, holy. They've seen the incarnation which they joyfully announce on a hillside outside Bethlehem. They've seen the crucifixion. They've seen the resurrection. They've seen the ascension of Jesus as he comes into heaven to receive all authority and power and dominion. They've seen all of that.

They've witnessed the exodus. Isaiah, they're gathered round the throne of God, declaring, holy, holy, holy. They've seen the incarnation, which they joyfully announce on a hillside outside Bethlehem. They've seen the crucifixion. They've seen the resurrection. They've seen the ascension of Jesus as he comes into heaven to receive all authority and power and dominion. They've seen all of that. And now, here they are looking at the church going, wow.

God is wise. God is powerful. God is gracious. God is faithful. Tis mystery all. The immortal dies. One of the things I like to do in sermons, apart from say amen every now and again, is to quote hymns. Here you go.

Tis mystery all. The immortal dies. Who can explore his strange design? Who can explore the mystery in vain? The firstborn seraph tries to sound the depths of love divine.

Tis mystery all. Let earth adore. Let angel minds inquire no more. That's the good angels. What about the fallen ones? Lewis captures it brilliantly in the screw tape letters. And if you're not familiar with the screw tape letters, it's where he's imagining an older demon mentoring a younger demon on how to keep people away from God. And the senior demon, he's talking to the junior demon about the church.

And he says, the church, I do not mean the church as we see her, spread throughout all of time and space and rooted in eternity, terrible as an army with banners. That, I confess, is a spectacle which makes our boldest tempters uneasy. See what he's saying? The fallen angels look at the church throughout time and space and they tremble. It terrifies them. Do you see what, by God's grace, you have been made a part of? You see it? The church is glorious because it's bringing glory to God as it enjoys and celebrates His grace, as it displays His wisdom and His power and His faithfulness and His love.

And this is the glorious purpose He is calling you, inviting you to give your life to. To display the wisdom of His glory and grace throughout the earth and into the heavenly places. Just by being part of a church. Because this is where it hits the road. This is where it all takes place. This is where the mystery is revealed in Crockenhill and in Swanley and beyond. This is where it's lived out in reality, here, amongst you, in this church. As we love one another, Ephesians 4, as we serve one another, as we bear with one another, as we declare the same truths that saints have been declaring throughout the history of the church, as we grow together in our shared understanding of God through His words.

That's why, incidentally, you should come and listen to a sermon together and not just listen to random stuff on YouTube all the time. Verse 12, as the people of Jesus, those that are in Him through faith in Him, freely and confidently approach God's throne of grace together and worship Him and pray to Him.

Where this eternal plan is being revealed in the church. So if you really want to bring glory to God, you really want to see His kingdom come, you will be present and active and committed in a normal, not very famous, not very exciting local church.

It's an awesome privilege to belong to a church. It's through uniting you to Jesus and gathering you into a church that you are able to display the wisdom and glory and grace, even to the angels in heaven. So you live out this new humanity in this local family.

It's a privilege. So treat it as a privilege.

Treat this church as a privilege. It is also a great responsibility. We have a responsibility to honour the grace that God has lavished on us by putting us into a local church. By giving ourselves wholeheartedly, sacrificially, joyfully, selfishly, to building up this church and through this church to building up the gospel across the globe. I wonder if I was to ask you before we started this, because you know the answer now, so this isn't fair, but if we would start with what would you say is the most important thing to give your life to? To give yourself to? I wonder if I asked that question, what the sorts of things that might come into your mind. Now put those things in light of Ephesians 3.

And where does this church rank in that list? I want to suggest to you that Ephesians 3 tells us that we should be giving ourselves primarily, if not exclusively,.

What an important thing to give your life to. To give yourself to. I wonder if I ask that question, what are the sorts of things that might come into your mind? Now put those things in light of Ephesians 3 and where does this church rank in that list?

I want to suggest to you that Ephesians 3 tells us that we should be giving ourselves primarily, if not exclusively, the building up of this church. As it proclaims and displays the eternal mystery of God. To unite all things together in Jesus for the praise of his glorious grace, even in the heavenly places. What a glorious thing. And I know it's easy to get discouraged. Verse 13, Paul's worried they're going to be discouraged.

I'm a pastor. I know the church doesn't always live up to this. I know it doesn't always look glorious. I know it can look small and insignificant. I know church leaders and individuals within the church can act in ways that are harmful and hurtful. And think of the Ephesians. Think of them. They're in this impressive, prosperous city.

And there is the great temple of a Greek goddess looming over them. There's the might of the Roman Empire and Paul, their founder and leader. He is locked away in a prison. He's facing death. Because he's been preaching this mystery, it's easy to feel discouraged. Well, not according to Paul.

Verse 13, I ask you therefore not to be discouraged because of my sufferings for you which are your glory. How are his sufferings? How is him being in prison their glory? Because of what he's suffering. Because he suffered for revealing the mystery of God's one eternal glorious plan of salvation through which men and women are saved, through which men and women are united to God, through which men and women become the people of God. And so he says, as I look at you, every one of you in this church, every individual is a testimony, a witness declaring the praise of God's glorious grace.

And that's the same in this room. Every believer, everyone who has been united to Jesus through the gospel, they tell a story. They reveal part of this wonderful mystery of how they came to Jesus through the proclaiming of the same gospel as they trusted in the same salvation, as they love the same Savior, how they've become part of the same people. Every story in this room is a beautiful one. It's a glorious one because it is to the praise of God's glory and grace. And it's on display every time you gather together. What's going on in the world? What's going on with God?

What's going on in your life? What's going on in this church? God is glorifying himself through his church. That doesn't explain every single individual event in your life, in this world, especially the painful and the tragic ones. But it does tell you they're not meaningless.

It tells you that every event in this church and in your life and in this world is part of God's big, grand, glorious, eternal purpose to build up his church as he unites all things together in Jesus. Amen. When we think about the church, when we think about Rock and Hill, Ephesians 3 should make us want to say, wow, this is glorious. I am blessed to be a part of it. I am going to give myself to it because I want people to see the glory of God revealed in his gospel, declared amongst his people. I want them to worship and enjoy him for it. We pray. Heavenly Father, we want to thank you for the Lord Jesus.

We want to thank you for his blood shed on the cross. We want to thank you for the peace that we enjoy with you through him. We want to thank you for the privilege of being made one of your children and one of your people that you, by your grace, have called us out to be part of the people of God. We want to thank you that we have the privilege of enjoying and expressing that through this local church. Father, we confess we do not always treat the church as the privilege it is. We confess that too often we are consumed with grumbling and complaining about things that are to do with our own preferences and not about celebrating and revealing and declaring the mystery of the gospel. Forgive us, we pray. Forgive us where we've neglected the church by not turning up,. fess, we do not always treat the church as the privilege it is.

We confess that too often we are consumed with grumbling and complaining about things that are to do with our own preferences and not about celebrating and revealing and declaring the mystery of the gospel. Forgive us, we pray. Forgive us where we've neglected the church by not turning up, by not serving, by being distracted by all sorts of other things. Help us to see the joy, the privilege of being part of this group of people. And help us to realise what is going on here Sunday by Sunday as we join together praising the one who lived and died and rose and reigns and is returning for his people. As we gather together, we are declaring the mystery of your purpose, of your will, of your gospel. Not only to this town, but to the angels in heaven. We join with them to worship you around your throne of grace.

We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. Let's stand and sing Church of God, elect and glorious. Church of God, elect and glorious, holy nation chosen praise. O let God of special people, royal priests and heirs of praise, know the purpose of your calling, show to all his mighty deeds. Tell of hope he shows, show him his grace, his deeds to you and me. God has called you out of darkness into his most marvelous light. O his truth to life within you, that your blindness into sight.

Let your light so shine among you, let God's name be glorified. Let all my flesh, hope and love rest in Christ Jesus crucified. Once you were an alien people, strangers to God's love. God he brought you out in mercy, citizens of heaven above. Let his love flow out to others, let them feel the love that's shared. That they too may know his welcome, and his tenderness share. Church of God, elect and holy, be the people he intends. Strong in faith and swift to awesome, be to run your master's test.

Royal priests, fulfill your calling, through your sacrifice and prayer. Give your lives in joyful service, sing his praise, his love be glad. And then Lord's Supper will follow. Again we invite all to stay. If you're not sure in your heart you're a Christian, then please stay, but please let the bread and the wine pass you by. Just have a short break and then we'll draw around the Lord's table.