Judgment

Posted on by korgrocker

“For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment 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 judgment. 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.”
1 Corinthians 11:29-32 NIVUK

In a previous blog, we considered what it means to discern “the body of Christ”. We continue to read today about what will happen to those who fail to “discern” what is really happening in the celebration of the Lord’s Supper. Reading between the lines of what went on in the Corinthians’ service of Communion, it must have been a bit of a riot compared with our sombre services today. They were apparently turning it into a drunken party, with those with the means to supply their own food and drink having a good time, and those without forced to sit on the sidelines and watch. And in some way, they considered that they were sharing in the Lord’s Supper by doing this. But before we condemn them and take the moral high ground, we must confess that some of us might be doing something equally dishonouring in our own thoughts. 

There were consequences to the Corinthians’ behaviour, and Paul made the association between those who shared the Communion in a way that dishonoured Christ and those who were suffering from illness or weakness, and even those who had died. How could that have happened? There is only one explanation, and that is God has brought weakness, illness, and even death to them as discipline for their failure to observe Communion with proper respect for Christ’s sacrifice and for each other. This could be a stumbling block for Christians who think God is a God of love, grace, and forgiveness and would never do such a thing. But God does discipline His children, “because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son“ (Hebrews 12:6). Comparing with the discipline meted out by human fathers, we read, “They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it” (Hebrews 12:10-11).

So, we pilgrims must approach the Lord’s Table in a way that honours Him. Paul wrote, “But if we were more discerning with regard to ourselves, we would not come under such judgment”. We must judge ourselves first with sincerity. In other words, we must be brutally honest with ourselves before joining in the Lord’s Supper, and we must change our attitudes toward Christ’s death and all those He died for. Then we will not have to worry about God’s judgment afterwards.

But a word for all those anxious in these circumstances, and who fear for their salvation, Paul wrote, “Yet when we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned along with the world” (1 Corinthians 11:32). When God disciplines us, it does not mean that He has rejected us and slammed the gates of Heaven in our faces. He still loves us and wants us to spend eternity with Him. 

Dear Father God. We are so sorry for the times when we have taken the emblems of Holy Communion in an unworthy manner. We pray for forgiveness and for the Holy Spirit to help us remember You the next time we have the opportunity to celebrate the Lord’s Supper. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Examine Yourself

Posted on by korgrocker

“When you meet together, you are not really interested in the Lord’s Supper. For some of you hurry to eat your own meal without sharing with others. As a result, some go hungry while others get drunk. … So anyone who eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord unworthily is guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. That is why you should examine yourself before eating the bread and drinking the cup.”
1 Corinthians 11:20-21, 27-28 NLT

Jesus said to His disciples the following: “He took some bread and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19). Jesus commanded them to remember Him during subsequent Passover meals, and at other times as well, by inference. Paul continued the Lord’s command in 1 Corinthians 11:25-26, “In the same way, he took the cup of wine after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood. Do this in remembrance of me as often as you drink it.” For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again”. But what is the purpose of celebrating this act of remembrance? We surely can think of Jesus at other times without sharing in the Lord’s Supper. 

Christians everywhere share the Lord’s Supper because Jesus commanded it —and for good reason. Over the centuries since that first Supper, the sharing of bread and wine has become ubiquitous in churches all over the world, and at every occasion, Jesus has been remembered. It has become a special way to remember His life, His death, and His resurrection, but not just in a detached and objective way. This celebration gives us the opportunity to personally remember all that Jesus did for us and, most importantly, how we must respond. Concerning that, Scriptures that include what Jesus taught, and those that the Holy Spirit brings to our remembrance, pop into our minds and sometimes bring conviction of sin. For example, Jesus taught in His Sermon on the Mount, “So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the Temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God” (Matthew 5:23-24). In a sense, the Lord’s Supper parallels these verses about the altar in the Temple, because we are making an offering, a sacrifice, to God through the Communion emblems. I remember, as a young Christian, becoming very upset about the behaviour of another church member at a church business meeting, to the point that I could not share in the communion service the following Sunday. I lacked the maturity to deal with the issue at that time, but it was right not to take communion until I had. Believers have a special command from Jesus that cannot be ignored, and Paul brought to the Corinthians’ attention that their approach to the Lord’s Supper was all wrong. It wasn’t about sharing a meal together or eating and drinking. Paul wrote to the Romans, “For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Romans 14:17). So, regardless of the origin of the emblems, the important fact is based on why we share them.

Through the prompting of the Holy Spirit, we must examine ourselves, as the Scriptures say, because the last thing that we want to do is to be “guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord”. The Lord’s Supper is a solemn occasion, but too often it is taken far too lightly by people in the congregation without consideration of its importance. I can remember in one church I attended that two young men in the seats behind me were discussing the previous day’s football match during the Communion service, that is, until my wife turned around and asked them to be quiet. 

So, in the moments of quiet before taking the emblems, we sit and ask God to point out anything we need to deal with. Sometimes He will answer our prayer, so that we can repent. He may also point out something we must deal with and stop procrastinating. But in these precious moments, we touch base with Jesus through the emblems of His Body and Blood. And in the end, we look to Jesus, because it is all about Him. With grateful hearts, we truly do remember Him and give Him all our worship, all our praise, and all the glory.

Dear Lord Jesus. Thank You for the memories of Your life, death, and resurrection, because once again it brings us to a place where we understand why You came to this world and the consequences it has for every person who has ever lived. We worship You today as we look forward to the next opportunity to share the Lord’s Supper. Amen.

Sharing a Meal

Posted on by korgrocker

“When you meet together, you are not really interested in the Lord’s Supper. For some of you hurry to eat your own meal without sharing with others. As a result, some go hungry while others get drunk. What? Don’t you have your own homes for eating and drinking? Or do you really want to disgrace God’s church and shame the poor? What am I supposed to say? Do you want me to praise you? Well, I certainly will not praise you for this!”
1 Corinthians 11:20-22 NLT

It is evident from the verses we are considering today that the Corinthian church celebrated the Lord’s Supper by sharing a meal. It seems that everyone brought their own food and drink, which they then consumed themselves rather than sharing it with those who had little food to bring. So the wealthier members of the church had a party and got drunk, and the poorer members just looked on. Paul was distraught by these reports because not only was the church being brought into disrepute, but the church members, in the process, had missed the whole point of the Lord’s Supper. Paul was quite forthright in what he said – “Do you really want to disgrace God’s church and shame the poor?”

In the Matthew 26 account of the first Lord’s Supper, we find that it happened “On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread”. The Jewish festival of Unleavened Bread, also known as Passover, commemorates the Israelites’ hasty departure from Egypt. For seven days, starting the day after Passover, observant Jews eat unleavened bread and avoid all leavened products to remember their ancestors’ leaving slavery without time for their dough to rise. In the account, we read that the disciples followed Jesus’ instructions to find somewhere to share the Passover meal, where “ … the disciples did as Jesus told them and prepared the Passover meal there” (Matthew 26:19). Regarding the sharing of the emblems, we read, “As they were eating, Jesus took some bread and blessed it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take this and eat it, for this is my body.” And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them and said, “Each of you drink from it” (Matthew 26:26-27). And in that simple act of dividing up the bread and passing around a cup of wine, the Lord’s Supper was celebrated.

It is unclear how the Corinthians celebrated the Last Supper with a shared meal, but this was a very different way from the one we have adopted in most churches today, where the Communion service is mainly symbolic. But having said that, I can remember an especially significant Communion service which we held in the church I was attending. It was a mid-week get-together, and we each brought an item of food to share as a snack lunch. But after we had finished, we noticed a bottle of unopened grape drink and some bread rolls. It was then that we spontaneously shared some pieces of the rolls and a cup of grape juice to celebrate the Lord’s Body and Blood. We then continued in a time of prayer that was quite special. Sharing and remembering, the very point of the Lord’s Supper.

Dear Lord Jesus. We thank You for giving us an occasion when we can remember You and all that You did for us at Calvary. Once again, we remember the importance of why and how You celebrated that Last Supper. We worship You today. Amen.