1 Corinthians 10:16
Communion With Christ
Ogden Baptist Church
April 12, 2009
Introduction
In 1 Corinthians 10:16, Paul wrote,
Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ?
I want you to imagine a scene with me…a scene of beauty and wonder and grace. The King of heaven and earth has prepared a feast in honor of His Son. The table has been prepared, the Son has taken his place at the head, and it is you and I who have been invited to sit and dine and fellowship. As we look around the table we do not see heads of state, no powerful men and women, no pomp or puffed-up looks of self-importance. No, we look around the table and see one another…men and women, boys and girls loved by God, here by invitation. The Son, Jesus Christ, is prepared to receive us as guests and honor us as friends. He has prepared a feast before us.
Can you imagine the scene? To be asked to eat with the King of Glory? Were He a physical king with a physical kingdom and you and I were invited to feast at his table, we would certainly prepare ourselves for the occasion. Our dress and demeanor and language and disposition would all reflect great joy and honor toward the One who has invited us.
God has indeed prepared a feast in honor of His Son, and the Lord’s Supper is symbolic of that feast. I chose to draw your attention to the verses we read in 1 Corinthians for a couple of reasons. First, it is the only place in the Bible where the Lord’s Supper is referred to as a participation. But secondly, and more specifically, because I want you to understand what that word participation means in relation to the Lord’s Supper.
The word participation is the same word that we studied in Philippians the other night where the Philippian church participated with Paul in the advancement of the gospel. It comes from the Greek word koinonia and it means partnership, participation, fellowship, or social intercourse. In other words, it is the joining of two or more into one. That’s why Paul continued in 1 Corinthians 10:17 by saying,
Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf.
The word partake comes from the same Greek word as participate. Paul’s point was simply this – that in coming to the table, whether it be the Lord’s Table or an idol’s table, we are joining ourselves to that which it represents. We become one with it and with those who partake of it with us. “We, who are many, are one body.” Jesus Christ is the Bread of Life, and in communion we participate, or as the King James puts it we commune: we become one with one another and most importantly, with Him.
Now, while the Lord’s Supper was a new thing for the people of God, the idea of eating and drinking in His presence was not. For example, in Exodus 24 God called the leaders of Israel up to the mountain to meet with Him. And listen to this,
Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel went up and saw the God of Israel…But God did not raise his hand against these leaders of the Israelites; they saw God, and they ate and drank.
You can think back even earlier than that to a time when God enjoyed perfect communion with Adam and Eve in the Garden. God created them for fellowship with Himself and to glorify Himself, so I can imagine Him in their presence as they ate meals and feasted of His goodness in His presence. He created them for that: for oneness with Him.
When this fellowship was broken by sin, God still allowed some meals, such as the sacrificial meals, so the people could symbolically eat in His presence. These meals were a partial restoration of the fellowship with God that Adam and Eve enjoyed before the Fall. They were a picture of the communion God desires. But the fellowship of eating in the presence of the Lord that we find in the Lord’s Supper is far better. The Old Testament sacrificial meals continually pointed to the fact that they were still looking for the Messiah. The Lord’s Supper, however, reminds us that Jesus’ payment for our sins has already been accomplished, so we now eat in the Lord’s presence with great rejoicing because now we can truly commune with God. Now the enmity that stood between us and God has been removed. Now the offense that kept us from being one with Him is gone and all that stands in our way is our own stubbornness.
But even the Lord’s Supper looks forward to a more wonderful fellowship meal in God’s presence in the future, when the fellowship of Eden will be restored and there will be even greater joy, because those who eat in God’s presence will be forgiven sinners now confirmed in righteousness, never able to sin again!
That future time of great rejoicing and eating in the presence of God is hinted at by Jesus when He said, “I tell you that I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.” We are told more explicitly in Revelation 19:9 about a future feast, “The the angel said to me, ‘Write: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” This too will be a time of great rejoicing in the presence of God as well as a time of reverence and worship and awe before Him.
From Genesis to Revelation, then, God’s aim has been to bring His people into fellowship, into participation, or into communion with Himself. And one of the great joys of experiencing that fellowship is the fact that we can eat and drink in His presence. It would be healthy for us today to recapture a more vivid sense of God’s presence at the table of the Lord. When we partake of the Lord’s Supper, it’s not just a drink from a thimble and a wafer of bread so we can think reflective thoughts about Jesus. He is here! We are in the presence of the King! That’s why it’s called communion!
Jesus said, “Where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them.” He is here today. Not literally in the bread or in the cup as some believe, but here, in our presence. He is here, in those of us who believe. He is here, dwelling among us collectively as a church. He is here, communing with us. We sit today in the presence of the King of Glory who suffered and died for us!
Would you say that the King deserves honor today? - let me give you some ways you can do that.
1. Examine yourself – why are we at the Lord’s Table? Why have we come? Are we in the right frame of mind? Are our attitudes right? Are our motives right? Have you really trusted Christ as your Savior? Are you living in obedience to His Word? Is Christ in you? Consider this: today you are sitting at the Lord’s Table. What does He see when He looks across the table to you? Does He look upon you as one of His children? Is He pleased with what He sees? Is He happy with what is in your heart? No matter if you and all the world are satisfied with your life…Is He? Examine yourself.
2. Confess any known sin – is there sin in your life? Christ died to see you free from sin. Jesus didn’t die to help you manage your sin. He died to eradicate it from your life. He came to destroy its power over you. Are you holding on to it? Clinging to it?
Look past the commonplace sins that you overcame years ago. Are you allowing Christ to free you from the sins of your tongue? Have you confess and repented of your anger? Your resentment? Your bitterness? Your fears? Your worry? Envy? Lack of trust? Whatever He reveals to you…confess it.
3. Surrender your life – if you’re not sure whether you’re saved now is the time to make sure. Have you ever surrendered your life to His? Not just asking Jesus into your heart, but have you truly repented and trusted Him for salvation?
God desires that we offer ourselves as living sacrifices to Him. Every redeemed person, every disciple of Christ must be a man or a woman consecrated to Him, entirely separated to live for Him, for His will, for His work, and for His honor. Remember, in communion we are one with Him.
4. Express your gratitude – How do we honor our dinner host? We examine ourselves, confess our sin, surrender our lives, and express gratitude for the privilege of being in the King’s presence. It is because of His sacrifice; because of His shed blood; because of His suffering; because of His death that we can have communion…that we can participate in this meal.
The Scriptures teach us that those who do not honor the Lord at His table do not discern His body and actually eat and drink damnation to themselves. Paul said that some got sick and even died because they took the whole matter lightly. Hopefully you’ve taken time before you came to prepare your hearts and minds, but just in case you did not, I want to give you that opportunity. It will seem like an eternity, but I want to give you a few minutes to think and to pray. I want you to take these few moments to respond to the leading of God’s Spirit.
As you do that the men will pass the elements around, then I will lead us in prayer.
Matthew 26:26-29
While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take and eat; this is my body." Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it anew with you in my Father’s kingdom."
