John 17:1

Recently, I have been thinking a lot about the issue of purpose. Part of that has to do with some of the material I have been preparing for an upcoming seminar. However, the other aspect is that it is something I contemplate quite frequently. The question of purpose has been on my mind.

About 22 years ago, Pastor Rick Warren from just up the road in Orange County released a book that became a huge success: The Purpose Driven Life. This book is one of the biggest Christian books ever sold. There are many Christians who have differing opinions about that book or about Pastor Rick Warren himself. You may disagree with various things he says, and that is perfectly fine. I often find myself disagreeing with my own thoughts. So, if there are aspects you disagree with him on, that’s okay.

That book might even be on some of your shelves at home. Some of you have read it, and I know more than a few people who came to Christ as a result of it. In the 22 years since it was first published, The Purpose Driven Life has sold more than 50 million copies and has been translated into 137 different languages. There is a reason for that. Everything he wrote in that book seemed to strike a chord with people.

I think the reason it resonated is not that it is the most amazingly written book; it is not poorly written, but it does not feature spectacular prose. He did not identify anything uniquely profound. Instead, he wrote about topics that people have discussed frequently throughout the church age. What he wrote struck a chord because something in our culture has caused people to experience a heightened sense of urgency regarding purpose and meaning.

Now, 22 years after its initial publication, this issue is even more acute than it was back in 2002. Many people have identified that, in recent years, individuals are wrestling with the issue of purpose and meaning. This phenomenon is being referred to as a crisis of meaning. Every single human being needs to answer some very important questions, which we might call existential questions. Each individual and every worldview—how one philosophically navigates through life and the world—plays a role in this search for meaning.

Every worldview needs to answer these questions in a compelling way, or else you will lack meaning. You'll find that you lack an understanding of your value in this world or the value of your work if you can't answer some very simple questions. I call them the iPod M questions because they are identity, purpose, origin, destiny, and morality.

Identity: Who am I? Purpose: What on earth am I here for? Origin: Where did I come from? Destiny: Where do I go when I die? Morality: What is right and wrong? There are other important questions as well, such as those concerning reality, truth, goodness, and beauty. However, these five are crucial. I think the most important one for human beings is the question of purpose.

A number of different writers have addressed this issue, whether from a theological, philosophical, or psychological perspective. The question of purpose is very important, and it is the question that Rick Warren asks repeatedly throughout his book: What on earth am I here for? Why am I here? If you can't answer that question in a compelling way, people often find themselves descending into a meaninglessness of existence. They struggle to find their footing for why they are here, and we are seeing that in a significant way today.

This is especially true among those in their early 20s to 30s, often referred to as Gen Y or Gen Z. However, it is also acutely felt by baby boomers, who are now reaching retirement age at a rate of over 10,000 people a day. For many of these individuals, the culture they grew up in indoctrinated them to believe that their identity and purpose were found in their work and career. They devoted so much of their energy and attention to that, and now, as they prepare for retirement or have already retired, they find themselves questioning, "What on earth am I here for?"

This can lead to feelings of depression and a lack of understanding of their value and worth. We see this phenomenon in our culture, affecting both Gen Y and Gen Z, as well as baby boomers.

We're seeing it even more with those who are identified as Generation X. These individuals are generally between 50 and 65 years old at this point. Why are they beginning to experience this? Well, the bulk of them are now facing what some in the Baby Boomer generation experienced some time ago: the empty nest syndrome. This generation, much more than many others in recent times, has found their identity and purpose in their children, especially in their children's sports careers.

Now, as their kids leave home, they start to feel a pit of emptiness and wonder, "What on earth am I here for?" They didn't invest quite as much in their careers or work as the Baby Boomer generation did; their entire focus was on their kids. As their children begin to launch out and leave, they feel lost, questioning their meaning, purpose, and value. These are the questions that people wrestle with.

You may be sitting here this morning and thinking, "I've not thought about this at all." That's probably because you've been very busy. We often don't consider questions of identity, purpose, origin, destiny, and morality when we are preoccupied. When you're busy getting an education, starting a career, building a business, or starting a family, these thoughts tend to take a backseat.

However, when the education you worked so hard for does not lead to a meaningful job, or when you can't find a job to pay off the $80,000 student loan debt, you start to ask, "What on earth am I here for?" Similarly, if you searched for a relationship online, swiped right and left, but it doesn't materialize, and now you're in your 30s without someone to share your life with, you begin to wonder about your purpose.

Perhaps you did find a relationship, but at some point, there was a diagnosis of a mental health condition, chronic pain, or even a terminal disease. In these moments, you may find yourself asking, "What on earth am I here for?" Along the way, as we hit these critical junction points, people experience what a couple of generations ago was called a midlife crisis; today, it is often referred to as an existential crisis.

To ask the questions of identity, purpose, origin, destiny, and morality, we must specifically consider the question of purpose. In our culture, there are two major competing worldviews or stories that we tell ourselves, sometimes referred to as meta-narratives. The dominant counter meta-narrative to the one found in the Bible today is a naturalistic worldview that does not provide compelling answers to the questions of identity, purpose, origin, destiny, and morality.

Regarding identity, you are viewed as the highest form of animal, and someday something will evolve that is greater than you, ultimately overcoming your species. There are people working towards that today; it is called transhumanism. As for purpose, it is reduced to merely passing your genetic material on to the next generation, perhaps to continue the species. The origin of life is explained by random chance and mutation over billions of years. When it comes to destiny, the belief is that when you die, you are simply absorbed back into the ground. Morality becomes subjective, with the idea that whatever you think is right or wrong is your truth, but there is no objective standard.

We wonder why there is a pervasive question in our culture today regarding inherent value and worth, and whether there is any meaning to all of this. Many people are wrestling with these issues. I want to suggest that this cultural worldview, which has been infused into the hearts and minds of every single person in this room for the better part of the last 75 to 100 years in the Western world, is a pathological worldview. It leads to sickness—mental, emotional sickness, and even physical unhealth. We see this constantly.

The question of purpose is a very important one that people wrestle with. What on earth am I here for? I have been thinking a lot about this recently, not because I am in the midst of a midlife or existential crisis, but because this is something I contemplate constantly. I wrestle with these questions quite a bit, as I believe they are very important. Even if you do not wrestle with them in the same way that I do, I encourage you to think about it this morning. What on earth am I here for? What is your purpose?

I believe there are two ways we can answer that. One is the very specific purpose that is individual to each one of you here in this room.

That is often manifested when people, as Christians, begin to ask the question, "What is God's will for my life?" That's one of the most frequent questions that younger Christians wrestle with, especially those who are Christians through high school and on into college. Maybe you, at that stage of life, asked the question, "What is God's will for my life?" This question at least tells us that there is a desire for each of us to know our own specific individual purpose.

There is one way to answer the question of what the purpose of life is on an individual level, but then there is the general question of what the overall purpose is for which you and I exist. I believe that these questions can be answered. There is a specific answer because, point number one, if you're taking notes this morning, God created me for a specific and individual purpose. This is what we learn when we come to the Bible.

I think there is a certain part of even the person who doesn't believe in God or the Bible that recognizes the desire to have a purpose. They want there to be a reason why they're here beyond just passing on genetic material or furthering the human race. The Scriptures reveal that God created me for a specific and individual purpose. This is what Rick Warren was arguing for in his best-selling book, "The Purpose Driven Life." You can say whatever you will about that book; many people latched onto it because they realized they want there to be a specific and individual purpose.

Theologians and philosophers for centuries, well before Rick Warren ever came on the scene, have been talking about this. It is the issue of telos. Telos is the Greek word for ends or purpose, or what is the reason for something's existence. Something that exists has some sort of purpose, and we kind of understand this.

For example, this cup here has a very clear purpose for which it was made. Now, I can use it for other things; it's somewhat hard. I could use it to pound a nail in, but it's not going to be very effective, and I'll probably break it. That's the amazing thing about purpose, telos. Things were created for an intended purpose, and if they're not used for their intended purpose, they will be broken. If we see a lot of broken people in our culture, that might tell us that the purpose we've been telling people they've been made for is not right.

We see a lot of broken people—mentally, emotionally, physically. God created me for a specific and individual purpose, and I think that we discover the specific and individual purpose that is uniquely for you as you engage in doing the general purpose for which you were made. This general purpose is revealed to us by God in the Scriptures.

Rick Warren addresses the general purpose for which we were made in his book, summing it up in five different areas: worship, mission, fellowship, ministry, and similar aspects. All of these elements are really good, and I believe there is a lot of truth to them. In fact, he supports these ideas with Scripture. However, I want to focus this morning on something a little more fundamental regarding our purpose. We need to answer the question, "What on earth am I here for?"

On page 22 of his book, Rick Warren states that you cannot arrive at life's purpose by starting with a focus on yourself. This perspective is different from what our culture promotes. Our culture suggests that it's all about you; you must begin with yourself. You need to figure out who you are and find yourself. But maybe that's not the right approach. You cannot arrive at life's purpose by starting with a focus on yourself. You must begin with God, your Creator. You exist only because God wills that you exist. You were made by God and for God. Until you understand that, life will never make sense. It is only in God that we discover our origin, our identity, our meaning, our purpose, our significance, and our destiny. Every other path leads to a dead end.

Why did that book sell so much? Because something about it resonates with reality as we understand it.

Point number two: God desires that I discover and fulfill His purpose. Although I won't spend a lot of time on this, in discovering and fulfilling His purpose, you also fulfill your own purpose. This raises the issue of God's will. What is God's will for me? As I have contemplated this for a while, I believe we can discover something of the essential nature of God's general purpose for us by looking to a very interesting source.

This morning, I would like you to take out your Bibles. If you don't have a Bible, you can raise your hand, and one of our ushers will bring you one. The Gospels are in the last third of the Bible, beginning with Matthew, Mark, Luke, and then John. Please turn to John chapter 17.

As you're turning there, let me provide a little context and background as to why this passage of Scripture is important. In John chapter 17, we have a prayer of Jesus. Some of you may have heard of the Lord's Prayer before. That's the one that begins, "Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be thy name." How many of you have heard that one before? Lift up your hand. Some of you may have prayed that before. Perhaps you were part of a church where that was prayed regularly, or maybe you were told to pray it many times because you had some things to confess. That's called the Lord's Prayer, and it is found in Matthew chapter 6 and Luke chapter 11.

I think it would be more properly called the Disciple's Prayer because Jesus is telling his followers, his disciples, how they should pray. He says, "When you pray, this is how you pray: Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be thy name." He is giving them a model for prayer.

The prayer that we find in John chapter 17 would probably be better called the Lord's Prayer because this is actually a prayer that Jesus prayed. It is fascinating because this prayer was offered the night before he went to the cross. In this prayer, Jesus, the Son who is God in the flesh, is praying to God the Father. This can be a challenge for people, but it brings us into a discussion of the triune nature of God, the Trinity, and the doctrine of the Trinity. I won't go into that today, as it would take much longer to provide a thorough theological treatise on the Trinity. In fact, the church took about 400 years to hash that out in the first 400 years of Christianity, so I can't cover it in 21 minutes.

However, it is important to note that Jesus, the Son, tells us about his nature. The Son of an individual has the same nature as the individual from which he comes. Jesus has the nature of God in human flesh. In this passage, he is praying to the Father, and he is praying for you. He is praying for his disciples—not just the disciples who were there, like Peter, James, John, Bartholomew, Thomas, and so forth—but also for you. In this very passage, he says, "I do not only pray for these who are here, but for those who will hear their word and believe later." That includes you, if you are a follower of Jesus. So, he prays for you.

In this passage, God the Son, Jesus, God incarnate, is praying for us. He goes to God on our behalf and comes to us on behalf of God as God. He is doing the work of a priest, and he will actually perform the work of a priest the following day when he offers a sacrifice of himself for us. It is an amazing thing that is happening in this passage. Here, God incarnate, the creator of all things seen and unseen, is praying for you. His will is revealed in this passage for you, and in his will is his purpose for you.

I believe there are at least three things we can learn about our general purpose in this world from this passage, where Jesus prays for us, his people. We see it beginning here in verse one. The first thing we discover is this: point number three, if you're taking notes, I was created by God to know him experientially in relationship. That is one of the first things we learn in this passage.

How do I know that? Look at John 17, verse one. Jesus spoke these words, lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, "Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son so that your Son may glorify you. As you have given him authority over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as you have given him." And this is eternal life—note verse three—that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I was created by God to know him experientially in relationship. We discover that here in this passage.

Now, again, there are a number of other things happening in this passage. There is the whole strange concept of the nature of God, where Jesus, God on earth, is praying to God the Father in heaven. The triune nature of God is that there is one God who exists in three persons, yet he is still one united being—one God. It took 400 years of church history in the first 400 years of Christianity for the church to fully comprehend and understand this and solidify it as doctrine. But that is present here in this passage, and it is even seen in what we read in verse two, where it says, "Father, the hour has come."

Glorify your Son, that your Son may also glorify You. There is this glorification of Father and Son, from Son to Father and from Father to Son, which speaks to the reality that they have the same nature. They are co-equal, co-eternal, and co-substantial, but distinct persons who glorify one another.

We see in this passage that Jesus has authority. You have given Him authority, as stated in verse two, which is the Greek word "exousia," meaning power. He has the power and jurisdictional authority to give something that every single one of us deeply desires: eternal life. It is one of the most fundamental drives that every being has—the desire and drive to live.

As a pastor, I have spent quite a bit of time over the years with people who are approaching death, sometimes in their last hour. It is amazing how much this body holds onto life. There is a drive to live, but there is also a drive to not just live here in this life, but to live on and on and on. It is a deep desire that we all share, and that desire is ultimately satisfied in God. I am not convinced that you and I are by nature immortal. I do not believe that we have immortal souls; only one is immortal. The Scriptures say God alone is immortal, but Jesus has brought to light life and immortality through the gospel. He has the authority to grant or give eternal life to whoever He may choose. That is what is revealed in this passage.

Then, He explains to us what this eternal life is. This eternal life is to know God, to know Jesus Christ. That word "know" speaks of an experiential, relational life. You and I were created to have an experiential relationship with God forever and ever, unbroken by time. That is one of the purposes for which you were made. I was created by God to know Him experientially in relationship.

Now, the problem is, as we discover in the opening pages of the Bible, we are separated.

From God, we are divided from Him because of sin. Genesis chapter three makes this very clear. Prior to Genesis chapter three, the creation story in Genesis chapters one and two tells us that at the very beginning, God made it so that humans were able to live in connection with Him. There was a relationship with God; they walked with God in the garden in the cool of the day. What exactly that means has been theorized about for a long time. Whatever it means, at the very least, it indicates that there was a relationship between God and His creation, most specifically with humanity at the beginning.

However, because of rebellion and sin in Genesis chapter three, that relationship was severed. But God, through Jesus, came to this world, which we celebrate at Christmas, to do what? He came to redeem us from sin and death, to reconcile us back to a relationship with God, and to ultimately restore all things back to the way they were before the fall. That's what Jesus is doing in this world. He redeems, He reconciles, and He restores. He restores us back to our purpose, and part of that purpose is to be in relationship with God. This is eternal life: that they might know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent.

Secondly, the next thing for which we are made is point number four on your outline: I was created by God to glorify Him forever. Again, back to John chapter 17, we see this word come up quite a bit in this passage. In fact, it is used eight times, both in verb and noun form. The word "glorify" appears frequently.

In John 17, verse one, Jesus spoke these words and lifted up His eyes to heaven and said, "Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son may also glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him. And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent. I have glorified You." There it is a third time. "On earth, I have finished the work which You have given Me to do."

What was Jesus's purpose in coming? It is revealed in a number of different places in the Scriptures. In one place in the Gospel, He says, "I have come to seek and to save that which is lost." In another place, He says, "I have come to give My life a ransom for many." In yet another place, He says, "I have come that you may have life, and that you may have it abundantly."

More abundantly. Here in this passage, Jesus says, "I have finished the work that you purposed me to do." And what was that work? He states, "I have glorified you here on earth." Now, he calls us to share in this work. In verse five, he continues, "I have glorified you on earth. I have finished the work which you have given me to do. And now, oh Father, glorify me together with yourself, with the glory which I had with you before the world was."

The ever-existent one, the one who was and is and is to come, Jesus was glorious and glorified before creation. He glorified the Father here on earth two thousand years ago. He says, "I'm about to return to your presence outside of this cosmos, in the presence of Almighty God, in what we might call heaven." He adds, "I will glorify you again in that place." But he desires that you and I would glorify the Father in and through him as well.

Skipping down to verse nine of John 17, Jesus prays for his disciples: "I pray for them. I do not pray for the world, but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. And all mine are yours, and yours are mine. And I am glorified in them." One of Jesus's purposes in coming to this world was to glorify the Father on earth, and he desires that we would share with him in that purpose.

I was created to glorify God. Some of you may have read many years ago the Westminster Shorter Catechism of Faith, which was written several hundred years ago. The Westminster Catechism is a question-and-answer format that helps you understand what you believe. The first question is, "What is the chief end of man?" The Westminster Confession states that the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy him forever. Christians have understood this for a long time.

I was created to be in an experiential relationship with God. I was created to glorify God. In fact, all of God's creation was made to bring praise, honor, and glory to God. In the same way that a masterpiece of art brings honor to the master who created it, the great Creator, the great Engineer, the great Artist—God—created everything seen and even the things that we cannot see. He created all those things, and they bring glory to him. They glorify his existence. The existence of that painting on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel proves that there is a master behind it.

A painter created the artwork, and its existence declares the existence of the artist and of all things seen and unseen. They declare the existence of the artist, the architect, and the engineer, glorifying His existence, intellect, power, and resources. The psalmist said it three thousand years ago: "The heavens declare the glory of God, and the earth shows forth His handiwork." Day unto day, they utter speech. There is not a time when creation is not praising, honoring, and glorifying all that God has made.

All of creation does this. The sun, the moon, the stars, the orbits, the seas, the rivers, the oceans, the water cycle, the hills, the mountains, and all the animals cry out that there is a God who made these things. However, all of God's creation praises and glorifies Him except for one part of His creation: you and me. We rebelled. We were created to glorify God; that was our purpose, but we turned away from Him. Although we knew God, we did not glorify Him as God, nor were we thankful. Instead, we became futile in our thoughts, and our foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, we became as fools and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible human beings, birds, four-footed animals, or creeping things.

Therefore, God has given them over to uncleanness and the lust of their hearts to dishonor their bodies among themselves. We exchanged the truth of God for the lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. That is Paul in Romans chapter one. What is he saying? He is identifying something from 2000 years ago that continues today. The intelligentsia of our culture for the last 165 years has proclaimed that there is no God. They assert that all of this is the product of random chance and mutation over billions and billions of years, and it is so awesome and amazing that we should honor, glorify, and praise the creation.

What is that called? The Bible would call that idolatry, and we see it all around us. But in spite of our rebellion, we were created by God to glorify Him forever.

That is the purpose for which we were made: to live in experiential relationship with God, to glorify Him as God forever. This purpose has been devastated, and we have rejected it; we have turned away from it. However, Jesus came to fix that. He came to redeem, to reconcile, and to restore.

The final thing we learn in Jesus's prayer here in John 17 about our purpose for which we were made is this: I was created by God to live in unity of purpose, communion, and oneness with Him. We were created to have an experiential relationship with God, to glorify God, and to live in oneness and communion of relationship with Him.

Look at John 17, verse 11. Jesus says, "Now I am no longer in the world." He is preparing to depart from this world, but He continues, "These, my disciples, are in the world, and I come to You, Father, Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given to me, that they may be one as we are one." This highlights the awesome reality of the triune nature of God. God is one, but He is one in three persons: distinct persons who are co-equal, co-substantial, and co-glorious. They are united together as one. There is a oneness in God, but there is a distinctness of three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Jesus says He has come so that they might be joined back together and experience oneness with God.

Look at verse 20. Jesus states, "I do not pray for these alone," referring to the disciples who were in His presence—Peter, James, John, Bartholomew, Thomas, and so forth—but also for those who believe in Me through their word. He prays that they may be one, as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be one in Us. This unity is so that the world may believe that You sent Me.

He continues, "And the glory which You gave Me I have given to them, that they may be one as We are one. I in them and You in Me, that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me and have loved them as You have loved Me."

On the night that Jesus would be betrayed by one of His disciples, Judas, the night that He would be turned over to the Jewish council, the Sanhedrin, to appear before them...

The chief priest was condemned to die and then taken to the Roman governor of Judea, Pontius Pilate, where he was also condemned to die. The night before he would be crucified on the cross, Jesus prayed for you, that you and I would experience oneness with God through him. He prayed that we would experience life in connection with God through Jesus.

Maybe you've heard those words before. We talk about them a lot here. Garrett mentioned them in the announcements this morning. They are on the front of your bulletin and on all our printed material. One of our websites that leads to our church website is called Life in Connection. Our whole focus is life in connection with what? With God, with one another, and with the world through Jesus.

It is a restored connection whereby Jesus redeems and reconciles us back to God and one another in Christ Jesus by his death on the cross. He brings us back to the place where we fulfill his purpose. That's what we're all about here at Cross Connection Church. You may have heard this before because I talk about it all the time, especially in the first few weeks of the year. But it's important for us to hear these important truths again.

Why? Because I see it as part of my call as a pastor to lead you into the discovery of this purpose: that you were created to be connected to God, and your heart will not rest until it rests in him. Augustine said that 1,600 years ago. Our culture is falling apart, and I am rather pessimistic about Western culture. I am long on Jesus and his kingdom, but short on Western culture because it is deteriorating.

Why is this happening? Because we have indoctrinated our culture for nearly two centuries with a pathological worldview that is destroying it. Unless we refocus on the good news of the purpose we find in Christ, there is no hope for Western culture. I know it sounds kind of bleak. We still have an optimistic vision of the future here, but it is centered on the kingdom of God.

My aim is that you would discover this purpose and that we would learn together how to experience the reality of being connected to God and one another, sharing that with the world through Jesus Christ. There are many different ways that we discover in the Scriptures how we connect with God.

We connect with God when we gather together as the people of God and worship Him in song. It may seem like a trivial or dumb thing, but God uses that to unite us together as one. There have been studies that show that in corporate singing, your heartbeat begins to tune with the heartbeats of others around you. What is that? There is something about connecting with God and with one another corporately in singing, even if you have a bad voice. That's why the Scriptures say to make a joyful noise. Most of you make a joyful noise, and I do too. It's only like Anthony and Shayla who make good noise.

We unite together with God. We join together in fellowship with Him through worship, through His Word, through serving one another, and through praying together and for one another. We experience this connection with God and with one another. What does it do? It completes us because it fulfills the purpose for which we are made. That's what God wants you to enjoy in Christ Jesus. That's what Jesus came to accomplish 2,000 years ago through His broken body and His shed blood, which for many centuries the church has called communion. We are going to partake together in communion this morning.

We always begin the year by partaking together in communion. We do it every seventh Sunday here at Cross Connection Church. I am going to invite Anthony and the worship team back up here. As we sing to the Lord this worship song, our ushers are going to be in the aisles to distribute the bread and the cup. If you did not receive them when you came in, they will give them to you then. We are going to partake together to remember what Jesus accomplished through His broken body and His shed blood. He made it possible through His sacrifice for you and me to be redeemed and reconciled back to God, back to fellowship with one another, which we will talk about more next week. Ultimately, we could experience the restoration that Jesus has come to and will come to accomplish in the future.

This is the good news that we have to share with the world, a world that is in desperate need of finding its ultimate purpose. We live in a culture that is sick because it has been told by liars, a devilish false truth, an anti-truth, that purpose is found in some trivial, insubstantial thing in this world.

When in reality, our ultimate purpose is only found in You. God, I pray that You would help us who are here in this room this morning to know this—not just intellectually, but experientially. I pray that we would know it in such a way that we begin to live it, experience it, and express it to other people. There are hundreds of thousands, nearly a million people within ten miles of this building who are in desperate need of this truth.

So God, would You do a work in us in 2024 where we more fully discover the purpose that You have created for us generally, but then specifically as we begin to glorify You. As we connect with You through worship, serving, prayer, and all these different practices, may we discover the very individual and specific thing that You created us uniquely for, for such a time as this. God, do a work in us, we pray. We ask this in Jesus' name, and all those that agreed said, Amen.

As we sing, if you did not receive these, the ushers will bring them to you, so hold on to them. We'll partake together in just a moment. A scripture that many of you may know well is, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Jesus came to this world to seek and to save that which is lost, to give His life a ransom for many.

On the night that He was betrayed, He took bread, broke it, and said, "Take, eat. This is My body, which is broken for you. Do this in remembrance of Me." Let's partake together. In the same manner, He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, "This is the cup of the new covenant in My blood. This do as often as you drink it in remembrance of Me." Let's partake together.

Lord, I'm not even sure that we fully comprehend the goodness that is revealed in what You did for us on Calvary 2000 years ago. We can only begin to scratch the surface of Your love and see it demonstrated through the cross. Lord, You desire that all people...

Would come to the knowledge of the truth, that all people would come to the place of finding the fullness of their purpose in You. The purpose for which You created us is that we would be in united relationship with You, that we would glorify You and no longer be in opposition and rebellion. Just as all the other things of Your creation magnify Your awesomeness, we too should reflect that glory.

The things we see when we look out into the cosmos through a telescope or down into the cellular level through a microscope, and even below that at the subatomic level, Lord, reveal the awesomeness of Your existence. I pray, God, that we would glorify You in the same way that those things glorify You.

As we experience the relationship that You created us for and express it, I ask that You would draw other people into the knowledge of that purpose as well. God, do a work in us, we pray. Thank You for Your grace. We thank You for Your mercy. We thank You that You have been good to us. Amen.