1
Corinthians 11:17-34
In the following directives I
have no praise for you, for your meetings do more harm than good. In
the first place, I hear that when you come together as a church,
there are divisions among you, and to some extent I believe it.
No doubt there have to be differences among you to show which
of you have God’s approval. So then, when
you come together, it is not the Lord’s Supper you eat,
for when you are eating, some of you go ahead with your own
private suppers. As a result, one person remains hungry and another
gets drunk. Don’t you have homes to eat
and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God by humiliating
those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you?
Certainly not in this matter!
For I received from the Lord
what I also passed on to you: the Lord Jesus, on the night he was
betrayed, took bread, and when he had given
thanks, he broke it and said,‘This is my body, which is for you; do
this in remembrance of me.’ In the same way, after supper he took
the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do
this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.’ For whenever
you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s
death until he comes.
So then, whoever eats the
bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be
guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. Everyone
ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink
from the cup. For those who eat and drink without discerning the body
of Christ eat and drink judgement on themselves.
That is why many among you are weak and ill, and a number of
you have fallen asleep. But if we were more discerning with regard to
ourselves, we would not come under such judgement. Nevertheless, when
we are judged in this way by the Lord, we are being disciplined so
that we will not be finally condemned with the world.
So then, my brothers and
sisters, when you gather to eat, you should all eat together.
Anyone who is hungry should eat something at home, so that
when you meet together it may not result in judgement.
And
when I come I will give further instructions.
New
International Version.
**********
Church
basis of faith:
The
Lord’s Supper has been given to the churches by Christ as a visible
sign of the gospel. It is a commemoration of Christ’s sacrifice
offered once for all and involves no change in the bread and wine.
All of its blessings are received by faith.
Terms
used for the Lord's supper:
The
Lord’s Supper is often known as the Eucharist or Holy Communion.
Some refer to it as the Blessed Sacrament or even Sacrament on the
Table. It is also known as an ordinance of the Lord. So what do
these terms mean and are they accurate or useful descriptions of the
celebration that we know?
It
is largely the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches which would use
the Blessed Sacrament and Sacrament at the Table terms.
- A sacrament is simply a symbolic religious ceremony.
- An ordinance is a decree or an order which on this occasion was given by The Lord Jesus.
- Eucharist is derived from the Greek word (eucharisto) which simply means “thanksgiving.” In 1 Corinthians 11:24 is the word Paul used for “when he had given thanks.”
- Communion is derived from (koinonia) which simply means fellowship, sharing or as in the AV: communion. In 1 Corinthians 10:16 “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?”
- The Lord’s Supper is the term that I am most comfortable with. This comes from 1 Corinthians 11:20-21. Paul in this passage, by way of rebuking the Corinthian for drunkenness and greed at the Lord’s Supper tells them that it is not the Lord’s Supper that they are celebrating.
Due
to an abuse of these terms we have understandably reacted against
some of them. We should however not be afraid of them; they are all
good biblical terms. Perhaps it is time that we claimed them back for
the use for which they were intended.
The
Lord’s Supper is a sacrament around a table. It is an ordinance of
the Lord Jesus in which we give thanks together in fellowship as we
eat together.
Our
basis of faith states that the Lord's Supper is a “commemoration of
Christ’s sacrifice offered once for all and involves no change in
the bread and wine. All of its benefits are received by faith.” The
Elders of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis where John Piper is
the pastor say more fully:
“We
believe that the Lord’s Supper is an ordinance of the Lord in which
gathered believers eat bread, signifying Christ’s body given for
His people, and drink the cup of the Lord, signifying the New
Covenant in Christ’s blood. We do this in remembrance of the Lord,
and thus proclaim His death until He comes. Those who eat and drink
in a worthy manner partake of Christ’s body and blood, not
physically, but spiritually, in that, by faith, they are nourished
with the benefits He obtained through His death, and thus grow in
grace.”
This
concise statement is clear and helpful and is probably something that
we should consider adopting for ourselves.
Some
useful points for us to understand what we are doing when we
celebrate the Lord’s Supper:
- It is the Lord’s Supper. It was given by the Lord for a set purpose. It is not our supper and therefore we cannot do as we please. Even though there are very few instructions concerning the process we are not at liberty to make more or even less of the ordinance than is prescribed in scripture. The rules are to be obeyed, the Corinthian church were guilty of abusing the celebration and were rebuked by the Apostle Paul who declared their ritual to not be the Lord’s Supper, it may have looked like it but it was false and therefore unacceptable to God. 1 Corinthians 10:14-17
It is the Lord’s Supper. It is a meal with all of the benefits that a meal has but due to its abuse in the Corinthian church it has become a token or symbolic meal. Because the meaning of it is spiritual rather than physical, it was never intended to be a feast but a memorial! We therefore break one loaf signifying Christ’s body given to us and drink of one wine signifying the New Covenant in Jesus’ blood. The Old Covenant was ratified through sacrifice and the sprinkling of blood, see Exodus 24:8. This Covenant required the death of an innocent victim (an animal) which pointed forward to a more perfect sacrifice. A New covenant was to come. Jeremiah speaks of this in chapter 31:31-34:
“The days are coming,”
declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant
with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. “This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will they teach their neighbour, or say to one another, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the LORD. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”
with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. “This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will they teach their neighbour, or say to one another, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the LORD. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”
This New Covenant finds perfect
fulfillment in Jesus, it is His death and resurrection that brings
about all that Jeremiah foresaw. This Lord’s Supper that we
celebrate states this most clearly. It is our Passover meal.
- It is a Remembrance. The Lord said to do this in remembrance of him! Whenever we eat and drink we must remember Jesus; it was He who came from the glory into this world as a baby with the set purpose of accomplishing salvation for His people. But who is He? He is Immanuel which means “God with us.” Matthew 1:23. He is the “Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world!” John 1:29 He is the Son of God whom the Father loves: Mark 1:11 He is the Creator: John 1:3 He is God come into the world, made flesh: John 1:14.
This
same Jesus died as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. We are made
right with God through His death and resurrection. This is what we
remember when we celebrate this supper. It is not a morbid occasion
as some make it out to be. It is not about our feelings or
sentimentality it is a celebration of all that our God has done for
us in Christ Jesus.
- It is a Declaration. 1 Corinthians 11:26 tells us that whenever we celebrate this supper we are declaring that Jesus will come again. The great promise of the New Testament is that Jesus is building His church. Matthew 16:18 and that there is coming a day when all that are to be saved will be completed. At this time Jesus promised that He will return from glory and gather His saints to be with Him forever: 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18. Whenever we have this communion we declare this truth to each other. This serves as an encouragement. Paul in 1 Thessalonians concludes the promise of Jesus’ return with the instruction that believers are to encourage each other with this great promise. The celebration of Lord's Supper for this reason is an encouragement to the church.
- It is a Recognition. By the taking of the bread and wine we are saying that we recognise him. In 1 Corinthians 11:29 Paul warns those who do not recognise the body of the Lord are bringing judgement upon themselves. If we eat and drink in a way that takes Christ from being the focal point; then the blessings dry up and the church becomes weak and sickly. That is exactly what had happened in Corinth. They were guilty of eating and drinking wrongly the result being that the church had become backslidden. The evidence being immorality amongst the leaders! This is a salutary warning to us as a church. It is clearly important that we celebrate the Lord’s Supper correctly; the consequences of not doing so are serious!
- It is a Communion. In 1 Corinthians 10:16 Paul tells us that not only do we give thanks and that we remember but we also take part. As we take the bread we have a participation (NIV) or communion (AV) with Christ. The letter that Paul writes is to the church at Corinth and in this he is saying that when the church eats together then they are in communion with the Lord Jesus.John Stott said: “Jesus did not only break the bread; he gave it to the disciples to eat. He did not only pour out the wine; He gave it to them to drink. He was not content that they should watch and listen; they must eat and drink. So the service is a communion as well as a commemoration.”This leads me to the conviction that the Lord’s Supper is intended for the gathered church and is not really meant for individuals or for small group participation.The church of Rome teaches that the mass must be celebrated for entrance into heaven this has certainly left an unhelpful mark within the church. The Lord's Supper is a special “means of grace” by which God imparts blessing to the gathered church. It is not a “means of special grace” as Rome believes, by which special and more important blessings (usually expected just prior to death) are given by God through the hand of the participating priest. The very fact that these leaders claim to be priests is a good hint at what they believe. The mass is a regular sacrifice of Jesus made for sin on behalf of the people by the priest in charge. The truth is that Jesus Christ is our great High Priest who sacrificed Himself once for all. His shed blood is sufficient for the forgiveness of sin for all who believe on Him. He is the only Priest that we need.
This
Lord’s Supper is so much more than a ritual that we do regularly.
If we add anything to it, then we are guilty of devaluing its true
meaning. It is all about Jesus and nothing else. Equally if we take
away from it then we are also guilty of depriving ourselves of its
true meaning. We in effect devalue the purpose for which Christ
instituted it and are guilty of celebrating something other than the
Lord’s Supper. It might look the same but if celebrated wrongly
then we are guilty before God. Our celebration is a sham:
We
should therefore examine ourselves and our motives and recognise who
it is that is symbolised in the bread and wine: 1 Corinthians
11:28-29
By
not celebrating the Lord's Supper the church becomes weak and falls
into spiritual slumber. It becomes a dead and formal church with no
life and power! We must guard against such a thing; we need our
church to be full of life for the Lord’s sake, for our spiritual
health and for the gospel benefit of those with whom we are involved!
What
is happening?
More
to the point we ought to ask “what is not happening” when we
celebrate the Lord’s Supper. Certain groupings believe in a
miraculous changing of the bread and wine upon the blessing by the
officiating priest (transubstantiation). They believe the bread to
miraculously become the actual body of the Lord and the wine to
become His blood. They then feast upon His body and drink His blood
in a literal fashion. This they believe to be the true food and drink
that Jesus spoke of in John 6:53-59 But is this what Jesus meant when
He instituted the Lord’s Supper?
The
first thing that we must remember is that it was the Passover that Jesus
was celebrating. The synagogue celebrated the Passover by the
ceremonial breaking and sharing of bread and the drinking of wine
together in remembrance of God’s deliverance of His people from
slavery in Egypt. The cost of their freedom was the death of the
firstborn son in each family. God graciously accepted the sacrifice
of an innocent victim on behalf of the firstborn son in any faithful
family. That victim was to be a male lamb without any blemish. The
parallel to Jesus is plain for all to see! The firstborn did not have
to pay the price but an innocent victim did. It is no coincidence
that it was on the night of the celebration of the Passover that
Jesus was betrayed and would be arrested and made ready for
execution. The head of the household would take unleavened bread and
as they broke it would liken it to the bread of affliction that their
forefathers had eaten on their exodus from Egypt: Exodus 12:17ff.
Jesus with this in mind as He broke the bread declared that He
fulfilled all that it spoke of. He said this bread speaks of my body
given for you. Now when you do this do it in remembrance of me! Luke
22:19. In other words the Passover takes on a whole new meaning. The lamb
of the Passover is perfectly fulfilled in Jesus who is the Lamb of
God who takes away the sins of the world. Then when He drank the
Passover wine He declared it to be the New Covenant in His blood
which is poured out for you: Luke 22:20
There
is however a danger that we over simplify what is happening in our
communion with God. There is much made in scripture of this being
food for our nourishment, but the Lord makes it plain that this is
dependent upon our remembrance of Him.
C.H.
Spurgeon said: “we not only eat of His bread, but symbolically
we feast upon Him.”
Vaughan
Roberts in his book True Worship says:“In this there is a real
presence of Christ at the Lord’s Supper but it is located in the
heart of the believer and not in the elements themselves. Communion
occurs by faith.”
Article
28 of the Church of England helpfully states: “The body of
Christ is given, taken, and eaten in the supper only after a heavenly
and spiritual manner. And the means whereby the body of Christ is
received and eaten in the supper is faith.”
Therefore
as we eat in remembrance and faith our souls are fed by Christ. This
is so much more than a lesser miracle of bread and wine changing
their substance could ever be.
Who
is it for?
The
Lord’s Supper is a celebration of all that the New Covenant
achieves. The New Covenant in Christ’s blood brings freedom from
sin. The Passover meal of the Old Covenant was a celebration of
freedom from human slavery in Egypt. The meal was for those who had
benefited from God’s gracious deliverance. Anybody could enjoy the
meal and the spectacle of it but only those who were truly grateful
for what God had done really took part in its true purpose. Therefore
it is logical to say that it is for the children of Israel only. It
is exactly the same with the Lord’s Supper, many can eat bread and
wine but only those who have benefited from the forgiveness of sin
through Christ’s sacrifice achieved on the cross really commune
with God in the partaking of the memorial meal. The Lord’s Supper
therefore is for believers alone. It is a glorious reminder to them
as to the grace of our God, who through the sacrificial death of His
Son Jesus Christ accomplished salvation for us. This is our own
personal Exodus from sin to righteousness.
Sadly
due to wrong thinking there has become a sentimental element attached
to the celebration. Comment concerning the communion can often be
heard as to the beauty or the wonder of the celebration. It can so
easily become an emotional occasion that almost fosters pity for what
Jesus went through. Hebrews 12:2 tells us that Jesus endured the
cross due to the pleasure that would result from its indignity and
curse. Tears of pity are not required as we partake but it should
cause heartfelt praise, worship and thanksgiving to God for the
sacrifice made. It is not a solemn occasion but a celebration of deep
joy in the same way as the Passover was to Israel. That is why the
Lord Himself said that he had eagerly awaited to eat that Passover
meal with His disciples: Luke 22:14. His imminent suffering was about
to accomplish all for which He had come. As we gather for our regular
Communion we must come as the Lord came: Eagerly!
Helpful
Hints.
The
signpost found at a crossroads can be a helpful reminder as we
celebrate communion. The signpost has 4 different instructions upon
it. It points from one focal point to 4 different destinations. The
Lord’s Supper can be likened to a crossroads. The signpost there
reminds us to:
- Look back: Remembrance. When we see a signpost to Plymouth we do not stop there content that we have seen evidence of Plymouth. It spurs us on to travel to Plymouth and enjoy the pleasures found within. The bread and wine are a signpost pointing to Calvary. Do not stop and admire the sign but remember the place of ultimate sacrifice made on your behalf.
- Look up: Communion. Not only do we look back on what has been achieved but we are to look up to the One who achieved full and free salvation. It is Him we are communing with and are being fed by. As we eat and drink we are reminded of the cost but we are declaring once again that our trust is in Him alone.
- Look around: Fellowship. We are eating and drinking with like minded people; look around and appreciate them because they too are part of this great church gathered by the Lord Jesus. As we look around we should see that the even greater fellowship is found in God Himself. We are part of the family of God.
- Look forward: Hope. We are declaring Christ’s death until He comes. Until that time we have hope for the future but when that day comes then the church will be gathered in fullness; in perfect communion; in the presence of God Almighty.
Conclusion:
Our
church constitution tells us that the Lord's Supper is so important
that our very church membership is dependent upon us regular;y
celebrating it. To miss without acceptable reason for 6 consecutive
months brings into question our continued membership. In reality
anyone missing for the wrong reasons is guilty of putting themselves
out of fellowship.
But
for all who regularly celebrate there is blessing both personally and
corporately as the church.
The
Lord Jesus on the night he was betrayed took bread, and when he had
given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for
you; do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way after supper he
took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, do
this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” The apostle
Paul adds: “For whenever you eat of this bread and drink of this
cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes!”
“We
believe that the Lord’s Supper is an ordinance of the Lord in which
gathered believers eat bread, signifying Christ’s body given for
His people, and drink the cup of the Lord, signifying the New
Covenant in Christ’s blood. We do this in remembrance of the Lord,
and thus proclaim His death until He comes. Those who eat and drink
in a worthy manner partake of Christ’s body and blood, not
physically, but spiritually, in that, by faith, they are nourished
with the benefits He obtained through His death, and thus grow in
grace.”