Exekiel 7; Luke 10; Job 24; I Corinthians 11

Scripture:

The Lord’s Supper

1 Corinthians 11, 17But in the following instructions I do not commend you, because when you come together it is not for the better but for the worse. 18For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you. And I believe it in part, 19for there must be factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized. 20When you come together, it is not the Lord’s supper that you eat. 21For in eating, each one goes ahead with his own meal. One goes hungry, another gets drunk. 22What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I commend you in this? No, I will not.

23For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, 24and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

27Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. 28Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. 30That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. 31But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged. 32But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.

33So then, my brothers, when you come together to eat, wait for one another— 34if anyone is hungry, let him eat at home—so that when you come together it will not be for judgment. About the other things I will give directions when I come. (ESV)

Observation/Application:

What an awesome passage of Scripture. The Church at Corinth and forgotten what the Lord’s Supper was all about. They were not waiting for one another before celebrating this grand meal and they forgot that there were probably unbelievers in their midst. They forgot the fourfold purpose of this solemn celebration. What are those four purposes?

1. When we meet together to share in communion we remember the great work Christ did on the cross for us. In verse 24 Paul quotes Jesus as saying, “This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” When we take communion we remember this grand design of salvation and that we are a part of God’s awesome plan to save the nations.
2. We bring testimony of our unity in Christ. The Corinthian Christians were not waiting for one another. There was strife among them, and Paul scores them low because they did not come to the table in a unified manner. We are to testify to our unity in Christ when we come.
3. This celebration is a proclamation of the gospel for those who are among us who don’t know Jesus. The Apostle Paul reminds us of this proclamation, “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”
4. In that verse we see the fourth purpose of the Lord’s Supper. We look forward to his return. We are proclaiming his death until he returns. What a glorious day that will be.

Prayer:

Father God we thank you for this regular reminder of your love and grace for us and our duty in unity and the proclamation of the gospel. Help us to remember these things that next time we celebrate your supper. We pray these things in Jesus Name, Amen.

dmbaldwin

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Psalm 73, 85; 1 Corinthians 11:17-34

Scripture:

I Corinthians 11:17-26; 17 But in the following instructions I do not commend you, because when you come together it is not for the better but for the worse.18 For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you. And I believe it in part,19 for there must be factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized.20 When you come together, it is not the Lord’s supper that you eat.21 For in eating, each one goes ahead with his own meal. One goes hungry, another gets drunk.22 What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I commend you in this? No, I will not.

23 For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread,24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body which is fort you. Do this in remembrance of me.”t 25 In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. (ESV)

Observation & Application:

What an awesome passage of Scripture on the ordinance of communion. When looking at this passage we see three purposes for communion:

1. Communion testifies to our unity in Christ. As you see in verses 17-22 the Apostle Paul was reprimanding the church in Corinth for not showing unity in the way they observed communion. They ate when they wanted to, they didn’t wait for those that were late. It was a free-for-all. It didn’t express the unity a body should have in Christ.
2. It was a celebration — albeit solemn one — for what Christ has done for us on the cross. He gave his very life for us. The God of the universe died so that we could live. As one song writer put it. Life Himself died. Verses 23&24 speak to this truth.
3. It is a testimony to outsiders/seekers as to what this Gospel thing is all about. We proclaim the Lord’s death. We don’t proclaim it to those already believers in Christ, but to those who need Him! I love leading God’s people in communion and when we get to the cup to hold it high and repeat the words of verse 26.

So are you aware of these dynamics of the communion celebration when you are eating & drinking? What goes through your mind during this time of solom celebration? Let us know.

Praryer:

Father God thank you for Jesus Your only Son. What a sacrifice You made for us. Help us to keep our wits about us as we join with others in Your communion celebration. We pray these things in Jesus Name, Amen.

dmbaldwin