The Lord’s Supper

READ 1 CORINTHIANS 11:20-34

MEDITATION: Many times, we end up doing things without stopping to ask ourselves why we do them. Sometimes routine takes over and we lose sense of meaning. Sometimes, formality takes over and we lose the sense of awe. Sometimes familiarity takes over and we lose a sense of reverence. Have you lost a sense of reverence, awe and meaning for the Lord’s Supper?

Paul writes in 1 Cor. 11:23, “For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread…” On the yard of a little church in Germany stands a statue of a lamb that has an interesting story to tell. A group of men were working on the roof of the church one day when one tripped and fell to the ground. Quickly, the other men ran down the latter expecting to see him dead. But he was alive! As he fell to the ground there was a lamb that was feeding bellow. The man fell on it and crushed the lamb. He was so grateful that he had a statue of a lamb built in the very place where he fell. It reads; “MEMORIAL TO THE CRUSHED LAMB”. This is in essence what the Lord’s supper is all about. It is about Jesus, God’s lamb that was crushed for us, So that we may live eternally.

When Jesus broke the bread and held up the cup and referred to his broken body and the blood He would shed, He made a covenant or an agreement with us. The Lord’s Supper is a memorial meal. When we come to this Table of the Lord we are remembering Jesus’ death for our sins.

During the war in Vietnam, a young West Point graduate was sent over to lead a group of new recruits into battle. He did his job well, trying his best to keep his men from ambush and death. But one night they came under heavy attack and everyone ran to safety except for one man.

This soldier had been severely wounded. From their trenches, the young lieutenant and his men could hear him in his pain. They all knew that any attempt to save him – even if it was successful—would almost certainly mean death for the would-be rescuer. Eventually the young lieutenant crawled out of hiding toward the dying man. He got him to safety but was killed before he could save himself.

After the rescued man returned to the States, the lieutenant’s parents heard that he was in their vicinity. Wanting to know this young man whose life was spared at such a great cost to them, they invited him to dinner. When their honored guest arrived, he was obviously drunk. He was rowdy and obnoxious. He told off-color jokes and showed no gratitude for the sacrifice of the man who died to save him. The grieving parents did the best they could to make the man’s visit worthwhile, but their efforts went unrewarded. Their guest finally left. As the dad closed the door behind him, the mother collapsed in tears and cried, “To think that our precious son had to die for somebody like that.”

Friends, Jesus died for us while we were still sinners. We come to the Table of the Lord’s Supper to remember that, and to be thankful. If we consider again the words of Christ in John 6:57, “He that eats My Flesh and drinks My Blood, abides in Me and I in him”, we see a profound expression of His love for us. If we love another, we desire to be identified with that other. We speak of a married couple as if it is a single thing. It is a unity of being without a loss of individual identity. Jesus’ desire is to be united with us in a most intimate, and eternal, way. He gave us all of Himself on the Cross and the Eucharist for the sake of this unity. St. John Chrysostom says that, we do not just participate with Christ in receiving communion, we unite with Him. This union is not mere metaphor; it is reality.

The effects of the Eucharist are like the effects of food for our body. Food sustains life, and the Eucharist sustains the life of the spirit. It gives us the grace we need to deny ourselves and to live for Christ, to live his life; the Eucharist strengthens us spiritually. But just as ordinary food can be effected only when properly digested, so too the Eucharist can only produce its good effects when we are properly disposed to receive it. Consequently, there are several things we need to bring to the table of the Lord.

1. Before we sit down to a meal, we need clean hands. You don’t work in the garden or garage and then come inside, sit down, and eat dinner. You wash up first. This is why the Bible tells us to examine our lives before receiving Communion. We may see something that needs to be confessed and cleaned up. When we come to Jesus with remorse and repentance, we find forgiveness, restoration, and an invitation to His table.

2. Also before dining, we need a good appetite. What would happen if you were invited to someone’s house for dinner, and an hour before the meal you ate a bag of chips, a soda, and a pack of m & m? After all this junk food, you would have little appetite for the good stuff! Paul tells us, “You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and also the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and of the table of demons.” (1 Cor. 10: 21). God offers us a substantive meal—the Bread and Cup won’t fill us up physically, but they will satisfy our spiritual hunger. When we stuff ourselves with the junk food of sin we lose our appetite for the banquet God has prepared for us. We need to “taste and see” the satisfying goodness of the Lord (Psalm 34:8).

3. When we are dining, we also need time to enjoy the moment. When we partake in the Lord’s Supper, we come to savor the moment, to linger and reflect and remember. When we come to the Lord’s Table, our spiritual meal should be the focus of why we are here. The Holy Eucharist is the center of our worship, and it should be the center of our attention. Believers must learn to stay focused and discerning of the Eucharist, and not let themselves be deviated by anything else, no matter how noble those might appear to be.

4. We need to be grateful for this meal. Those who prepare meals appreciate being told that people enjoyed their meal. When we come to the Lord’s Table, we need to eat with gratitude, to not take it for granted. We need to appreciate the cost of this meal. Jesus has prepared a meal for us that cost Him His life. We should appreciate the sacrifice of our Savior; otherwise we miss the whole point of this celebration.

Amazingly, sometimes children tend to understand the Eucharist better than adults, with their childlike faith. There is a big difference between being childish and being childlike. When we are childlike we come to the Lord’s Table with a sense of wonder and awe. A minister asked a group of young children what they thought of Communion, and here are some responses: A 9-year old said, “Communion is part of God and God’s life.” A 10-year old answered, “It reminds me of Jesus and that He died for us.” A 7-year old responded, “It makes me happy to remember that Jesus loves me.” And a 12-year old stated, “It’s the closest we can get to Jesus.”

The Lord’s Supper is about God’s gift. We see the work of sacrifice in Christ’s words “this is My body which will be given for you.” (Luke 22:19) Jesus said, “This is for you.” It was for you he died, on Calvary, and therefore, there is a sense in which this is the believer’s table. The Lord’s Supper is not a solitary or private affair. It is a church ordinance which we observe corporately. The Supper has a horizontal dimension. At the table we relate to one another, as well as to the Lord.

What is your understanding of the Lord’s Supper? How would you explain it to an 8year old? Do you cherish the privilege of being at the table of the Lord? Will you be meeting the Lord in a very special way during these last days of Lent? Will you be keeping the fellowship of his table? And the fellowship of other believers? Does your participation at the Lord’s table proclaim the death and resurrection of the Lord to others?

ACTION: THERE IS URGENT NEED TO MAKE A COMMITMENT TO THE KEEPING OF THE TABLE FELLOWSHIP OF THE LORD’S EUCHARIST ON A MORE REGULAR BASIS AFTER THIS SEASON OF LENT. I AM HOPING THAT YOU CAN MAKE THAT COMMITMENT TO BE MORE OFTEN UNITED WITH THE LORD AND OTHER BELIEVERS AT THE SUPPER OF THE LAMB.

PRAYER: With haste I will run the race for the high calling of God.
I will put my whole heart into the task of serving the Lord and hold back nothing.
I will serve the Lord with all my heart, mind, soul, spirit and strength.
With great zeal will I labor in the vineyard of the Lord’s fields of harvest.

I will feed His Lambs willingly and with great delight.
I will not let the financial cost nor any persecution or suffering that I may endure prevent me from running the race of winning the souls of men for God.

This is my reasonable service to my Master and Lord, whom I will love with all my heart, soul, spirit, mind and strength. I will praise the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ, all the days of my life. Amen. (Add your own thoughts)