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[This sermon was preached on Remembrance Day (Canada) and was inspired by a chapter in Herbert Lockyer’s book The Man Who Died for Me. It was preached in two parts; for the complete order of service, email me: jonrmcleod@yahoo.com.]
“Do this in remembrance of me.”
1. THE REQUEST: “Do this”
a. It is the COMMAND of a Lord
Scripture does not tell us how frequently we should observe the Lord’s Supper. It is not the frequency that counts but the spirit in which we participate. It is not simply a duty of a ritual.
The Lord’s Supper is not optional or unimportant. It should be observed regularly and in a meaningful way.
b. It is the request of a FRIEND
It’s as if Jesus said, “When I am gone, do not forget Me. As you eat the break and drink the wine, remember Me and all that I suffered for your sake.”
On March 15, 1985, Wayne Alderson—a successful labor negotiator from Pittsburgh—appeared on the Today show. The significance of the date was that it was the fortieth anniversary of Alderson’s being wounded. He was the first American soldier to cross the Siegfried line into Germany in World War II. He had a permanent crease in his head from the wound.
Asked for his most important memory of the occasion, Alderson replied that it was a redheaded friend who saved his life that day. Alderson had come face-to-face with a German soldier. The German threw a grenade at Alderson’s feet, and Alderson shot the German. The grenade exploded almost instantly, sending Alderson to the ground, facedown in the mud.
A nearby German machinegun opened fire in his direction, and he knew that if the grenade had not killed him, the gunfire would. But Alderson’s redheaded friend turned him over, so he could breathe, and threw himself across his body, shielding him from the deadly fire.
“I can never forget the person who sacrificed his live to save me,” said Alderson, tears in his eyes. “I owe everything to him. I can never forget…I owe everything to him.”
Christ showed his love to us on the cross. We can never forget what He has done. We owe everything to Him.—In Remembrance of Me, pp. 157-158
Today, poppies are worn as a symbol of remembrance, a reminder of the blood-red flower that still grows of the former battlefields of France and Belgium. During the terrible bloodshed of the second battle of Ypres in the spring of 1915, Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae, a doctor serving with the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps, wrote of these flowers which lived on among the graves of dead soldiers:
In Flanders Fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
As Christians, we also have symbols of remembrance. Those symbols are before us: the bread and cup of the Lord’s Supper.
Why do we need Remembrance Day and the Lord’s Supper? Because we are forgetful people. We need to be reminded to remember.
“Lest we forget”
2. THE REMEMBRANCE: “In remembrance of me”
There is a tendency to think more of the Feast than the Friend, more of the Supper than the Savior, more of the emblems than Emmanuel. We must, however, strive to make more of “the Lord of the Feast,” rather than “the feast of the Lord.”
a. He is the LOWLY Nazarene
“…Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature [or in the form of] God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness” (Philippians 2:5-7).
The bread and wine tell us that Jesus, though divine, possessed a human body and human blood, just like ours.
God the Son became human so that he could bridge the gap between God and man. “There is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 2:5).
b. He is the CRUCIFIED Savior
“And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!” (Philippians 2:8).
When Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper, He said, “This is my body given for you” (Luke 22:19). And, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you” (v. 20).
The broken bread symbolizes the bruised and pierced body of Jesus. The outpoured wine symbolizes His shed blood.
“…the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” The Greek word that has been translated “for” can mean both “on behalf of” and “instead of.” The death of Christ was both personal—He died for me—and substitutional—He died instead of me, in my place.
c. He is the VICTORIOUS Redeemer
Luke writes in Acts 20:7, “On the first day of the week we can together to break bread.”
It’s interesting to note that Jesus didn’t specify any particular day on which the Lord’s Supper should be observed. Why did they break bread on the first day of the week?
“Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb [of Jesus] and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance” (John 20:1). The grave was empty!
“On the evening of the first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you!’ After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord” (John 20:19-20).
The Lord’s Supper was celebrated on the Lord’s Day (Sunday) to remind us that Jesus did not remain dead, but rose again. As Paul writes, “He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification” (Romans 4:25).
d. He is the ASCENDED Lord
Today, these symbols of our Lord’s body and blood are with us because He is not physically present. But that doesn’t mean He is not with us right now. Before Jesus ascended into heaven, He declared, “Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).
Jesus is now in heaven, but He promised to always be with us—especially when we are gathered around the Lord’s Table. At this very moment, Jesus is here!
e. He is the INTERCEDING Advocate
“My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense [we have an advocate with the Father, KJV]—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One” (1 John 2:1).
“He [Jesus] is able to salve completely [or forever] those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them” (Hebrews 7:25).
As we remember Jesus down here before the Lord’s Table, He remembers us up there before the Father’s throne.
f. He is the COMING King
“For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes” (1 Corinthians 11:26).
The Lord’s Supper points in two directions: (1) backward to the cross (“the Lord’s death) and (2) forward to His return (“until he comes”). The Lord’s Supper covers the journey of the Savior from His cross to His crown, from the tree to the throne.
When we remember on this day the sacrifice of Canadian soldiers, we are challenged to live with the same kind of selfless devotion. In a similar and much greater way, the death of Christ also shows us how we should live.
As you remember the sacrifice Christ made for you, what sacrifice is He telling you to make for Him?
REMEMBER ME
1 Corinthians 11:23-26
“Do this in remembrance of me.”
1. THE REQUEST: “Do this”
a. It is the ___________________ of a Lord
The Lord’s Supper is not optional or unimportant. It should be observed regularly and in a meaningful way.
b. It is the request of a ____________________
It’s as if Jesus said, “When I am gone, do not forget Me. As you eat the break and drink the wine, remember Me and all that I suffered for your sake.”
2. THE REMEMBRANCE: “In remembrance of me”
a. He is the __________________ Nazarene
The bread and wine tell us that Jesus, though divine, possessed a human body and human blood, just like ours.
b. He is the __________________ Savior
The broken bread symbolizes the bruised and pierced body of Jesus. The outpoured wine symbolizes His shed blood.
c. He is the __________________ Redeemer
The Lord’s Supper was celebrated on the Lord’s Day (Sunday) to remind us that Jesus did not remain dead, but rose again.
d. He is the __________________ Lord
Jesus is now in heaven, but He promised to always be with us—especially when we are gathered around the Lord’s Table.
e. He is the __________________ Advocate
As we remember Jesus down here before the Lord’s Table, He remembers us up there before the Father’s throne.
f. He is the __________________ King
The Lord’s Supper points in two directions: (1) backward to the cross (“the Lord’s death) and (2) forward to His return (“until he comes”).
As you remember the sacrifice Christ made for you, what sacrifice is He telling you to make for Him?
