Don't Profane What God Has Made Sacred Series

Sermon Brief

Date Written: April 10, 2014

Date Preached: April 13, 2014

Where Preached: OPBC (AM)

Sermon Details:

Series Title: A Series from 1 Corinthians

Sermon Title: Don’t Pervert What God Holds Sacred

(Prep 4 Good Friday Lord’s Supper)

Sermon Text: 1 Cor 11:17-34 [NLT]

Introduction:

What we have learned so far is that the believers in the church at Corinth were under spiritual duress & the Apostle Paul wrote this letter to address the issues they were facing!

Paul encouraged them by letting them know how much he loved and cared for them AND that he believes God is NOT done with them!

Several weeks ago we saw Paul reminding them about the foundation he had laid for them…a foundation of Jesus, & that anyone who attempted to build on that foundation must use WORTHY building materials…

I encouraged OUR fellowship to build wisely on the foundation of Christ in our lives as we seek to grow in Christ… we must use building materials that are of worth & not cut corners!

Last week we took a look at the final part of ch3 (v18-23) and found Paul admonishing & warning those in the church to realize & KNOW what they had in Christ! He warned them NOT to be deceived by false teaching and we learned that Paul was telling them:

Don’t Be Deceived! V18-20

Stop Bragging! V21-22

WHY? Because You Belong to Christ! V23

This morning we are going to jump forward in the letter and we are going to jump all the way to ch11 and to the final 18 verses of that chapter!

This coming Friday is a very solemn and holy day for ALL believers and we are going to come together as a body to commemorate and pay tribute to Jesus for what He has done for us…

Good Friday is ALL about the sacrifice that Jesus made on the Cross of Calvary for our sin… it is ALL about the message of the Cross and if we learned ANYTHING last week it was that the message of the Cross was central to our faith.

So as we approach the time we have to offer up communion to Him through the ordinance we call “The Lord’s Supper” I believe it is IMPERATIVE that our hearts are ready and we are humble in spirit before God… BEFORE we can partake of this sacred act.

I want us to take a look at the passage of 1 Cor 11:17-34 and know that Paul is addressing Christians here… NOT those in the world, but Christians! What do we find Paul saying to these people who profess Christ with their lips, but with their actions reflect a desire to please no one but themselves?

1. We find Paul admonishing them for their IGNORANCE of the sacredness of what Jesus had established (Lord’s Supper)…

2. We find Paul teaching them the INSTRUCTIONs on how they MUST act to hold this observance sacred…

3. We find Paul warning them that any IRREVERENCE of what God has deemed sacred results only in His wrath and discipline

IGNORANCE of the Sacred Leads to Sin! V17-22

17But in the following instructions, I cannot praise you. For it sounds as if more harm than good is done when you meet together. 18First, I hear that there are divisions among you when you meet as a church, and to some extent I believe it. 19But, of course, there must be divisions among you so that you who have God’s approval will be recognized! 20When you meet together, you are not really interested in the Lord’s Supper. 21For some of you hurry to eat your own meal without sharing with others. As a result, some go hungry while others get drunk. 22What? 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!

Now I have told you that Paul loved this church and was sure that God was NOT yet done with them, but in these verse Paul unloads on this church for some behavior that he finds reprehensible for believers!

We know what he is referring to by the verses that come after this section, but Paul discovered that this fellowship was playing fast and loose with a sacred ordinance given by God thru Jesus…we are talking about what we call “The Lords Supper” or “Communion”…

First we can see Paul’s frustration when he says in v17, “...I cannot praise you…” This was Paul’s way of telling them that he was highly upset at their actions regarding the Lord’s Supper. I would compare this to a parent looking at their child when they find out their child has been doing something they do not approve of and saying, “You KNOW this does NOT make me happy!” It is a nice way to say, “I am really angry!”