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This sermon is also available for download
in audio format. (16.1 MB .wav file) 26 While
they were eating, Jesus took a loaf of bread, and after blessing it he broke it,
gave it to the disciples, and said, ‘Take, eat; this is my body.’
27Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks he gave it to them,
saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you; 28for this is my blood
of the covenant, which
is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29I tell you,
I will never again drink of this fruit of the vine until that day when I
drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.’ 30 When they had sung the hymn, they
went out to the Eating! Now there’s a topic – if you’ll
forgive the pun – that most folks can really sink their teeth
into. Because it’s
something people enjoy doing. We
also know it’s something we have to do in order to survive. In fact it’s one of the very
first things we learn how to do, and the act itself doesn’t require all
that much instruction. Yet
despite it being such a prominent feature of our lives, for the most part
eating is simply a common routine repeated throughout our day and typically
we don’t give it much thought beyond I wonder what we’re having for dinner or where should we go out to eat. Although sometimes we do give a little more attention to the
concept of eating. For example,
if you’re going to be involved in some kind of celebratory meal –
maybe a birthday part or an anniversary dinner – you take time and give
careful thought to the process.
You ask yourself questions like what’s
going to be on the menu, and what
ingredients do I need to pick up at the grocery. You probably even consider all kinds
of ancillary things – things that usually don’t have anything to
do with eating – such as what am
I going to wear, do I need to get
candles, flowers, or balloons, or what
else do I have going on that day so I can be sure I’ll have the time I
need to get everything ready.
Or consider when someone decides to try and loose weight or perhaps
alter their diet for health reasons.
Suddenly the idea of eating becomes a very high priority as you begin
to plan menus and think about how the things you eat work together to give
you the best nutritional value, while also making sure you’re getting
enough calories so you’re not starving yourself. But even for all those times
when we do give eating a good deal of serious thought, have you ever stopped
to contemplate eating from a
spiritual perspective? Well,
whether you have or not, today you get your chance! Because no matter what ideas or
understandings you may have about the Lord’s Supper, and no matter what
the different aspects of this holy sacrament actually are, we must never
forget that the Lords’ Supper is,
in fact, a meal. Granted, it’s not a meal
as we generally think of one.
There aren’t a variety of courses being served, and one
certainly isn’t going to find a well-balanced proportion of nutrients
and calories required for daily physical needs. But it is still a meal, and the fact
that God chose something as simple as the act of coming together and eating
as a means of communicating something of himself
to us means it’s something we should stop and think about. First I think we should make
note of the fact that when God was present on earth in Jesus Christ that he
ate with his disciples. Now that
might seem a somewhat obvious and unimportant observation – of course
he ate with them because people need to eat and they were together nearly all
the time during his ministry. But
scripture actually gives us record of some of these eating events –
both before and after his death and resurrection. And in addition to simple sharing of
meals Christ also used eating as a teaching tool, and a vehicle for working
miracles, and even as an opportunity to associate with and minister to the
sinners and outcasts of his society.
So we have examples of Christ using the eating of food as a means of
giving his grace to the world.
But when we come to this final meal that Jesus shared with his
disciples, there are some unique aspects associated with it. So much so that it’s given rise
to a ritual that’s being repeated nearly 2,000 years later. At this initial Lord’s
Supper Jesus is sharing in the Passover meal with his disciples. The Luke account even tells us that he
had eagerly desired to share this
meal with them before he suffered.
So, try to get the picture and perhaps imagine what’s going on
in the minds of Jesus and the disciples.
Passover is a time of celebration and remembering when God provided
the great Exodus for the Israelites.
Let’s recount the story.
The Israelites are slaves in God has also commanded us to
remember through the celebration of this, his meal. And although the Passover is a part of
our heritage, part of God’s story working through history to redeem us,
it was in this particular meal that Jesus shared with his disciples that
night that the whole story took on added meaning. Because at some point during their
meal Jesus paused, took some bread, he broke it and gave it to each of the
disciples, and then declared, Take,
eat; this is my body. Then he
took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them with the instruction to drink, for this is my blood of the new covenant,
which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. These words that Jesus spoke
were not a part of the Passover ritual.
Sometimes I wonder what was going through the minds of the disciples
as they heard them. Did they
recognize that something was different about this night than any Passover
they’d celebrated before?
And sometimes I wonder what went through the mind of Christ, as he
said those words, knowing that in a few hours they would be fulfilled in his
literal broken body and spilled blood. This is the meal that the Lord
instructs us to observe in remembrance.
But what, exactly, does it mean to do
this in remembrance of me?
For one it is taking time to stop and think, to actually remember. And the Greek word from which this is
translated would be better understood as “not forgetting”. It implies a conscious, willful
action. So what, then, are we to
“not forget”? We are
called not to forget all that Christ has done. One of the awesome truths of
the atoning work of Jesus Christ is that it is so totally complete. Through the faithfulness of Jesus the
entire world – all of humanity and
all of the physical creation – can now be redeemed. And that atonement reaches back into
the past, validating the faithfulness of men like Abraham and Moses, all who
believed and obeyed God – it speaks to every situation of the present,
wherever any individual will accept Jesus Christ as Lord in his or her life
– and it stands ready to address every need of the future, sufficient
for any who will respond to God.
But more than this, we remember in very personal terms. The Lord’s Supper is an
opportunity to remember when I
accepted Christ’s saving grace for the forgiveness of my sins. And even as we remember that this is
what Christ did for me, we are also calling God the Father to remember what
his Son has done on our behalf.
Thus we are truly doing this for
Christ’s remembrance.
And it’s not because God can’t remember and we need to
remind him, but rather in calling God to remember we are pleading all over
again our need for Christ’s blood alone to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness. Because it’s all about
grace. And if you recall
I’ve already pointed out that scripture teaches us God has used
something as simple as the eating of food as a means to make his grace
available to mankind. Just
consider that for a moment – here lies an opportunity to get some of
God’s grace. Now be
clear. There is absolutely
nothing in this bread and juice that saves us. And nothing about this particular
ritual we observe can save a person any more than any other human work can save a person. Salvation only comes by God’s grace, through faith – which is
also a gift that God gives us.
And yet, when a person understands that these simple elements of bread
and juice are served as symbols of Christ’s body and blood, and accepts
in faith and with repentance Christ’s atoning work on his or her
behalf, then when the ritual is reenacted and the meal is eaten, then it does
become an opportunity for God’s grace to be expressed. In this regard, the
Lord’s Supper is truly nourishment for the soul. And just as surely as eating physical
food provides sustenance for our physical bodies, so partaking in Communion feeds our spirit. Christ often spoke of himself as the
Bread of Life. And in John
chapter 6 he even went so far as to say, unless
you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in
you – those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me and I in them. (vs. 53, 56) Rest assured, Jesus was not speaking
of cannibalism here. But there is
a very “realness” to the spiritual food available in the body and
blood of Christ. Of course, this
is not the only spiritual food God has made available to us. We also have his Word, the
communication of prayer, and the sweet blessing of Christian fellowship. But just as we know it’s wise to
eat a well-balanced diet to be at our best physically, should we not also
seek to ingest all the spiritual food God seeks to give? Therefore I would encourage you, those
who are seeking after God and his righteousness, that you would never pass up
an opportunity when the Lord’s Supper is presented. Yes, we are told not to come
to the table unworthily. But when
Paul gives this instruction in First Corinthians know that he was also in
that same context chastising certain members of the There is one other telling
feature about this meal that Jesus shared with his disciples. He said, I will never drink of this
fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my
Father’s kingdom. There
is an aspect of the Lord’s Supper that calls us to look ahead. We do celebrate that Christ’s
atonement is complete – the death he died he died once and for
all. But we also recognize that a
part of Christ’s work is yet to come, for he has promised that someday
he will return as Lord and Judge. At that time, those of us who have
accepted his atoning sacrifice will gather with him at another meal –
the Great Wedding Banquet. And at
that meal Christ will serve us and drink with us in celebration of his final
victory and the establishment of God’s heavenly kingdom. The meal we observe today we eat in
anticipation of that glorious day. What then should we do? Christ has commanded that we do this
as often as we would in remembrance of him. And by now, I hope, we all have a
little better understanding of some of the meaning behind the ritual of the
Lord’s Supper. So as we
prepare to partake of this holy sacrament, let’s reflect on a few
things. We’ve already spoken of
how this is a remembrance. We
will remember through reenactment.
Because there is something in the actual physical re-creating of an
event, the engagement of all our senses, that communicates to us on a level
beyond mere thought. I recently
had the opportunity, while in NY, to visit Trinity Episcopal Church and while
there I partook in their Holy Eucharist service. And as I sat there listening to the
priest speak the words of consecration over the elements, he took the piece
of bread – a single, whole piece – and he broke it. Now it was a simple sound, not unlike
the sound a dry twig makes when you’re walking outside in autumn. But I recall how that sound
registered, calling to mind the words, this
is my body, broken for you, and it was as if it reverberated to the very
core of my soul. So when you come
today, take the time to enjoy the experience of the reenactment. Feel the bread as you take your piece,
taste the bread and the juice, and remember. We’ve also spoken of how
part of coming worthily to this table is taking the time to reflect and
acknowledge that it is Christ alone who makes us worthy through his atoning
sacrifice. So take the
opportunity being afforded for self-evaluation. Allow God to search your heart. Respond to whatever he reveals to you
and then when you are ready to come, come with a grateful heart. Because this is also a meal of
thanksgiving and praise. So do
not hesitate to rejoice for all that Christ has done for you. And remember that although we
celebrate as individuals what God has done in our lives, this meal is also
known as Communion. We celebrate as the Body of Christ and
when you come you are a part of something greater than yourself. Imagine, if you will, that this table
stretches down the isle and out the door, through time itself. And as you gaze down the table you see
our brothers and sisters in Christ.
There are the saints of this local church, those who have recently
passed as well as those who were here when it was just being founded –
people like Mrs. Effolee Brady and Mr. John Hutchinson. And then beyond them are those of our
heritage, the men and women who worked to bring the Nazarene church to this
area of Tennessee and then farther back to those original founders of the
denomination. Farther still are
those like John and Charles Wesley and Martin Luther. Keep looking and you’ll spot the
church fathers who served the church so faithfully during those early
centuries. And if you look far
enough you’ll see Paul, Peter, John, and the other disciples –
and there, at the head, is Christ Jesus.
Because whenever this sacrament meal is reenacted, it really is the
table of the Lord, and the entire
Body of Christ participates. So
when you come, know that you are in the company of a great cloud of
witnesses. Rejoice and be
thankful that you are a part of this, the Church of Jesus Christ. And finally, don’t
forget to also look ahead. Know
that this meal you eat today is in anticipation of that coming banquet feast,
where once again the whole Body of Christ will sit together in fellowship. When Jesus finished that first
Communion meal with his disciples, they sang a hymn that was part of the
Passover tradition, and then departed to the Mount of Olives. We know that following that came
Christ’s arrest, trial, crucifixion, death, and eventual resurrection. With that in mind, allow me to use part
of a hymn to take us unto the reenacting of the Lord’s Supper
today. From one of the Hymns on
the Lord’s Supper by John and Charles Wesley: Come, let us
join with one accord Who share the
supper of the Lord, Our Lord and
Master’s praise to sing; Nourish’d
on earth with living bread, We now are at
His table fed, But wait to see our
heavenly King; To see the
great Invisible Without a
sacramental veil, With all His robes
of glory on, In rapturous
joy and love and praise Him to behold
with open face, High on His
everlasting throne. (Hymns on the Lord’s Supper #93) Communion
Service Prayer: Lord
God Almighty, we give you praise.
And we offer our sacrifice of thanksgiving for your mercy and
grace. We give thanks for the
faithfulness of your Son, Jesus Christ.
We acknowledge that the work of Christ, his death, is sufficient for
our redemption. And so we ask
that you would search our hearts.
Reveal yourself to us, and by your Spirit enable us to respond to you
in faith. Cleanse us from all
unrighteousness and make us your own. We
come in faith and with reverence to your table. And as we receive these elements,
according to the instruction of your Son, and in remembrance of our Savior,
we ask that you would grant us to become partakers of the benefits of his
atoning sacrifice. And
now Lord Jesus, come! Be with us
as we gather in celebration at your table. Amen. Closing
Blessing: And
now may the God of grace bless and sustain you. May he sanctify you entirely, enabling
you by his Spirit to respond in love with all your heart, soul, mind, and
strength. May he keep you until
such time as he allows us to meet together again. And may he keep you until that day
when we will sit at the great wedding feast in his heavenly kingdom. Amen. |