THE LORD’S SUPPER — AND OURS
1 Corinthians 10:16-17
INTRO: The Lord’s Supper is a very simple observance with a crystal clear meaning. However, across the centuries the church has made it an elaborate and ornate ritual. We have clothed it in mystery and obscured its simple message. It is really concerned with the consecration of the common place.
Jesus instituted this memorial meal using ordinary everyday items: bread and wine. Had he begun the ordinance in our time, he might have used coffee and doughnuts or coke and cookies. These were the two items of food which would have been found in even the homes of the poor in Jesus’ day.
Bread has been the staff of life for some seven thousand years, since the days of the earliest humans. The fruit of the vine has been a common beverage since ancient times.
In the Lord’s Supper Jesus took these ordinary elements and gave them a symbolic meaning. He said they stood for his body and his blood.
I. THE LORD’S SUPPER.
This is the Supper of the Master. All who know, love, and faithfully follow Christ come to worship him here at the table. There is a vertical dimension to our communion. Here we meet the Master and have fellowship with him.
How can sinful people approach a holy God? Our sin prevents our communication and fellowship with him. It is a barrier which separates us from our Maker. Therefore, God took the first step to establish a relationship with us, to open up communication. That first step was the incarnation. He sent his Son.
The New Testament has many ways to describe this gospel truth. One such word is drawn from the law courts. In Christ, God pardons our offense and acquits us of our sin.
Another image is taken from the slave market. It is hard for us to realize that half the population in the Greco-Roman world were slaves. In Christ, God ransomed us, brought us back, paying our sin debt in full.
The New Testament describes our salvation by saying that God in Christ has bought us (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).
The Lord’s table reminds us of the Lord and our redemption.
II. OUR SUPPER.
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.
As we approach the Lord’s table, and ours, let us first examine ourselves. This is a time for confession. We confess our sins of habit, attitude, and negligence. We have failed to help and encourage, to care and witness. Let us ask the Father’s forgiveness.
It is also a time to confess our faith and our love for God and one another.
CONC: Now let us take the Supper, with gladness and great joy.
