======================================================================== THE UNION OF LOVE by G.W. North ======================================================================== Summary: The sermon emphasizes the importance of the Communion of God, established through Jesus Christ, and the love that binds God and man together. Topics: "Sacrifice of Christ", "Divine Communion" Scripture References: Matthew 26:39, Luke 22:19, John 14:6 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ DESCRIPTION ------------------------------------------------------------------------ G.W. North emphasizes that God is the essence of communion, embodying eternal life and love among the three persons of the Trinity. Jesus came to establish this divine communion, fully aware of the suffering He would endure, as He prayed in the garden, seeking confirmation from the Father about His path. His commitment to the covenant was unwavering, demonstrated through the Last Supper, where He shared bread and wine with His disciples, symbolizing His love and sacrifice. North highlights that Jesus' cries were not of cowardice but a genuine inquiry into the possibility of another way, affirming that He alone could bridge the gap between God and humanity. Ultimately, Jesus, being both human and divine, is the only hope for establishing this communion. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ CONTENT ------------------------------------------------------------------------ God is The Communion. He is the original unique, eternal life concerning which the Bible is written. Three persons living together in one being is the same as three persons living together in communion; the bond of such perfectness can only be love. Into this Communion the Lord Jesus came to bring us. Yet how He should accomplish it none but His Father and He with the Holy Ghost knew. It is no wonder He said, 'I am the way'; there surely can be no other. The final end in view was so horrific that the final moment of decision was greeted with repeated cries -- 'Abba, Father, if it be possible let this cup pass from me.' His pleas at that late hour did not mean that He was drawing back or refusing to go through with the ordeal. He had known and committed Himself to the sacred covenant from the foundation of the world. How could He withdraw from that? By sacred symbol and heartfelt words He had already established the commemorative feast among the apostles. To Him it had been done as though it was all over already, His heart had been brimming with love at the time and still was. With everything in His own hands He deliberately took and broke and gave the bread, and poured out and circulated the wine for His friends to eat and drink. He had no intention of going back on His words and actions. His oath had been as much to them as to His God and Father. Men only tryst with whom they trust, and He had invited their trust without attempting to explain to their understanding all that was involved in what they were doing. They would not -- could not -- have understood had He attempted it anyway. But He does not ask man's total commitment only to betray it. His cries in the garden were not the cowardly cries of the traitor; He does not betray men. That man lying before God was not failing for fear, He was enquiring of His Father whether or not after all some other way could be found. But no, The Communion of God could only be established for men by Him; there was no other. Being both human and divine, He was the sole hope of men, the true Communion of God and man, He must bear the greatest contradictions of all. ======================================================================== Source: https://sermonindex.net/speakers/gw-north/the-union-of-love/ ========================================================================