Communion Message
Fully God and Fully Man
November 9, 2003
Pastor Leighton Sheley

As believers, the Scriptures refer to us in several different descriptions. It calls us a royal priesthood, a holy nation; it calls us the temple of the Holy Spirit. It calls us the bride of Christ, calls us the family of God, calls us the body of Christ. I'd like to invite you for the reading of God's word, let's stand, and the passage I'm reading this day is from Ephesians chapter 4, which is entitled 'Unity in the Body of Christ'. It is the words of the apostle Paul who writes:

As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling that you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit--just as you were called to one hope when you were called--one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

As each part does its work -- all of us, each and every one of us, have been given a gift, or more, by God's Holy Spirit for the building up of the body of Christ. Yet often times we live in rebellion like the cells of a body can live in rebellion. Cancer is an example of the cells of the body living in rebellion against that body. There are times when each and every one of us go through rebellious stages, and we sin against the body.

The writer to Hebrew says, Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--and yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we might receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Each and every one of us today needs to receive afresh God's mercy and His grace. And Jesus can sympathize with our frailties, with our weakness, because He was fully man and yet without sin. The Scriptures say at times like this we should examine our self. And I would like to invite you, if you are physically able, to join with me now as we kneel in the presence of our Lord and Savior.

Fully God -- fully man. Fully man that You might sympathize with our weaknesses and represent us. Fully God that You might do for us what we could not do for ourselves; that You would redeem our lives, our eternities, our souls from the destiny of sin. Thank you Lord for loving us with an everlasting love. Thank you for choosing us. Thank you for providing for us Your salvation. Thank you for revealing Your salvation to us. Thank you Lord for Your patience with us, and faithfulness to us when we so often disappoint You. Your word says if we confess our sin You are faithful and just and will forgive us our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Lord as we now partake of these elements we do so in remembrance of Jesus and the price that has been paid for our salvation. Let's partake of the bread, and also the cup.