I Bring Nothing to the Table

Ephesians 2:1-9, 12-13

A dead man cannot do anything to improve his condition

A corpse is unable to help itself

A woman who has passed away can’t touch up her make-up and

successfully give the impression that she is still alive

That’s the thing about death...it kinda’ puts a damper on all self-

improvement programs...kinda’ renders self-help books null and void

-because I mean—not to state the obvious—but if you are dead,

you are pretty much beyond the point of no return

--no pill, no herb, no high-tech device can conquer the horrible,

destructive power of death

You’ve been to funerals...you’ve suffered through the death of a

family member or friend...you know what I’m talking about

-death is real...it’s permanent...and it’s irreversible

A threat often heard in film and TV is: “you’re a dead man”

-it’s usually preceded by, “If you ________, you’re a dead man.”

--not really something most Chillicothians have to worry about

-but if you are in Chicago and a guy wearing sunglasses and a

pinstripe suit says that to you...or you’re in on the Paseo and a

gang member says that to you...

--you wouldn’t blow him off or laugh in his face or figure that he’s

just messin’ wit’ ya’

---of course not! you’d take him at his word and you’d

assume your life, as you know it now, is pretty much over

So why is it when we read something similar to that in the Bible, a

book most of us believe is inspired by God and therefore true, we

don’t give it a second thought?

-I won’t try to answer that question this morning, but I will point you

to some rather disturbing Scriptures—if you’ll take them seriously

Romans 3:23 à ...all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God...

Romans 6:23a à ...the wages of sin is death...

Ephesians 2:1 à As for you, you were dead in your transgressions

and sins

That’s not a judge sentencing you to death and you then spending

the next 10 years on death row

That’s not a doctor telling you there’s nothing more she can do and

you have 6 months to live

That’s the coroner pronouncing you already dead

So if the Bible is true, you are already dead, and what can you do

about it? What can you do to change that most inconvenient truth?

The answer—absolutely nothing! Nothing!

-you might think—I would start praying, going to church, tithing—but

you can’t because you are dead, cold, and helpless

Why is that?

-in a word borrowed from Romans 6:23 and Ephesians 2:1—sin

--listen how Ephesians 2 describes it—Read Ephesians 2:1-3

-and did you happen to notice who the exceptions are?

--that’s right—there are no exceptions

---“As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins”

---“All of us”...and “like the rest, we”...

-so our sin has not only condemned us...all of us...to death...it has

already carried out our execution

We are like the creepy valley of dry bones in Ezekiel 37

-Ezekiel 37:1-2 à The hand of the Lord was upon me, and He

brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle

of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among

them, and I saw a great many bond on the floor of the valley,

bones that were very dry.

--man, that’s not only creepy, that’s got to be one of the most

depressing, desperate, and hopeless scenes in the Bible

-but then in the next verse, God asks Ezekiel, “...can these bones

live?”

--now, Ezekiel’s answer was far more spiritual than mine,

because I’d be thinking, “Duh. I don’t think so.”

We are like Lazarus in John 11...a friend of Jesus who gets sick and

dies four days before Jesus shows up

-Lazarus isn’t sleeping or in a coma...Lazarus has been buried in

his tomb for four days...and as the KJV so aptly puts it, “But

Martha said, “Lord, by this time he stinketh!”

--Lazarus was a dead man

-I’ll let you read John 11 later today to find out what happens

Which brings us back to us...we who are dead already in our

transgressions and sins

-what can we do?

--perform CPR on ourselves? give ourselves a brain transplant?

call 9-1-1?

-no...look at the last line of v. 3 in Ephesians 2 à Like the rest, we

were by nature instruments of wrath.

We are on the receiving end of God’s wrath—not a nice place to be

-remember Ezekiel in that valley of dry bones and God asking him if

he thinks those bones can live?

God tells Ezekiel to speak to the bones and here’s what happens

next à ...there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came

together, bone to bone...and tendons and flesh appeared on them

and skin covered them...and breath entered them; they came to life

and stood up on their feet—a vast army.

And then...Ephesians 2:4 begins with one of the most hope-filled

words in all of the English language: But

-But there’s good news...But it’s not over yet...But there is hope!

Read Ephesians 2:4-5

Is that the most incredible news you’ve ever heard?

-I know you are not an “amen-ing” congregation—and that’s cool—

but those two verses should make even a stick in the mud like me

shout so loud that the neighbors could hear me

--I’m not kidding!

See, I think the reason we hear truth like in vv. 4-5 and we just sit

there like I’m reading the genealogy lists from Numbers is because

we still cannot grasp the idea that we were actually, spiritually dead,

deceased, flat-lined, pull-the-sheet-over-our-face dead

And until we do comprehend how dead we were...we will never come

even close to appreciating the life that we have been given

-not earned, not worked for, not deserved...but given

--notice in vv. 4-5 what motivated God to give us life—His great

love for us, His mercy, and His grace

Today, as a vital part of our worship, we come to the Table

-you might call it the Lord’s Supper table, the Communion table, His

table, or the table of grace

--you have been invited by Jesus Christ Himself...to share in His

body given for you, represented by the bread...and to share in

His blood shed for you, represented by the juice

---and unlike meals with your family and friends, you are not

asked to bring anything to this table

----first of all, because nothing more is needed

----but also because you and I have nothing to offer,

we have nothing to bring to the table