How many of you used to be small? (That should be just about everybody, right?) And how many of you felt like life wasn’t fair because you couldn’t do everything the “big kids” did, and you certainly didn’t have all the privileges and freedoms that accompany adulthood. One of the most obvious ways this “old/young”, “minor/adult” dichotomy manifests itself is at large family gatherings. I know we’ve considered this before, but just think for a minute about Thanksgiving in your family. For my family, and for many others I’m sure, Thanksgiving is one of the very few times a year that we all get together. And, of course, Thanksgiving is not complete without a big meal with all the trimmings. Of course, with that much food piled on a plate, everyone is going to need a place to sit! Yet, if you are all gathered in a single-family home, it can be a little complicated to find that many seats together, can’t it? Certainly, that has been the case in my family. So the solution my clever relatives devised? Like so many others, I’m sure, we always had two tables set up. The main dining table was for the adults, while the kids were relegated to the “kids’ table,” which was usually in the kitchen, or at the very least, “somewhere else.” And so, in the end, even though we had gathered as family, the meal was never quite fully shared as family.
Such is the case with the Corinthian church as Paul writes to them in this passage you just heard.. Though the church is considered the Body of Christ, a family united with Christ as our head, the Corinthians had instituted some practices surrounding their observance of the Lord’s Supper that were more divisive than unifying. It was not unlike the family that gathers for a meal, but then does not actually share the meal together. Unfortunately, though, the divisions among the Corinthians were not so sublime as a simple “kids’ table” versus “adult table.”
You see, the Corinth of the ancient world was a bustling crossroads of the major trade routes to both the East and the West. It was known as a prosperous city, and the wealthy of the city certainly flaunted their riches. As was the case all around the ancient world, there was a deep division between the rich and the poor. This problem was magnified by the fact that many rich people in ancient times prided themselves on showing hospitality to the poor, but the rich would do so in such a way to shame the poor and let them know they were inferior. For example, it was not uncommon for a rich person to have a main dining room for themselves and their closest friends, where excellent food and wine would be served, and then another room (or even sequence of rooms) with food and drink of a poorer quality for the poorer guests. And now, it seems, this practice had crept into the sharing of the Lord’s Supper among Corinthians Christians.
The thing of it is, though, the Lord’s Supper is supposed to be a meal that transcends all divisions and brings all Christians together as one in the Body of Christ. At this time, when Christians gathered to share the Lord’s Supper, it was much like that night Jesus shared in the Upper Room with his disciples. The Christians shared a whole meal together, and during the course of the meal, a particular loaf of bread and a particular glass of wine was blessed and shared. The problem was, the Corinthian Christians were not sharing this meal in such a way. Those with homes large enough to host gatherings of the Christian community were generally the wealthier believers, but they did not serve the meal equally to all gathered as a family should, instead they continued the secular custom of keeping the best for the rich and giving the rest to the poor. And so this Lord’s Supper, which is to serve as one of the central acts of worship uniting the body of believers, was instead a way of solidifying the deep divisions in the community. And Paul was outraged.
James W. Moore of St. Luke’s United Methodist Church in Houston tells a story about one of his minister friends, Tom. Even though he has an extremely busy schedule, Tom does a fascinating thing each month when he takes time to go down to the homeless shelter in his city and work in their soup kitchen.
After the homeless people have been fed, Tom invites them to join him in a service of Holy Communion and many join him to the little chapel and share the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. They have shared soup together in the soup kitchen and then they come to share the bread and the cup together at the altar in the chapel. One day, Tom had an unforgettable experience in the communion service. As he was moving down the altar serving communion, he came to a man kneeling there who looked like he had been out on the streets for quite some time. The man looked up at Tom and whispered: "Skip me."
"What? Pardon me?" Tom said.
In a louder whisper, the man said again, "Skip me."
"Why?" Tom asked.
"Because," the man said, "I’m not worthy."
Tom said: "Neither am I." Then Tom added: "I’ll tell you what. I’m going to serve communion to these other people. Then, I’m going to come back and serve communion to you and then I would like you to serve it to me."
The man blinked and said to Tom: "Father, is that legal?"
"Yes, it’s legal; it’s beautiful and that’s what we are going to do!" Tom answered. Tom went on down the altar and served all the other people kneeling there. Then he came back to the reluctant man and said: "What’s your name?"
And the man said, "Josh."
Tom placed the elements of the Lord’s Supper before him and said: "Josh, here is the Body of Christ and here is the Blood of Christ given for you. Eat this and drink this in remembrance that Christ came for you and Christ died for you. Amen."
Josh blinked back the tears in his eyes as he received Holy Communion. Then, Tom knelt and handed Josh the trays of bread and wine and said: "Now, you serve me."
Josh nervously took the trays and again he said: "Father, are you sure this is legal?"
"Yes, it’s legal. Just do it."
Josh’s eyes were darting from side to side as he looked over this shoulder and then the other, as if he expected (at any moment) the police, the FBI, the CIA or the Pope to come rushing in and arrest him. Finally, he held the trays toward Tom and as Tom received the Sacrament Josh muttered: "Body - Blood - for you, Hang in There!"
Tom said later: "Of all the communion rituals I have ever heard, I don’t recall the words ’Hang in There’ in any of them, but at that moment for me, Holy Communion had never been more ’Holy.’
The Table of the Lord is the place where all distinctions are nullified. Paul acknowledges in this passage that even within the church there will inevitably be some varied groups, but that should not be the case when we come to share the Lord’s meal. This is a meal for all, even though none of us are worthy. And if, when we break the bread, all share it in the same way, that declares powerfully that we are all one body. But if you divide the room, and the guests, into different groups, that makes the opposite point. When we share this meal, the “body” we are to recognize is both the presence of the Lord in this meal, AND the unity of the church that shares that bread. The two belong together. If we are not sharing this meal as one in Christ, then we are dishonoring Christ himself!
Today, all across the world, Christians are observing World Communion Sunday. As we join Christians of all shapes, colors, and creeds at this table today, it is a reminder that our sharing of the common loaf in this common meal signifies our unity in Christ above all. Still, we come to this table today marked by the divisions of our world. We all know how easy it is to hate and bully, to ridicule and ignore, to separate ourselves and point out people as “the other.” But our time at the Lord’s table calls us to a different way of living; a way that rises above all division, a way of unity, a way of grace and love that reflects the very love of Jesus Christ himself. This shared meal, a very embodiment of Jesus’ own sacrifice, is at the essence of who we are as Christ-followers. So, as you come to receive the Lord’s Supper this morning, as we share in this meal today with Christians around the world, come ready to experience God’s grace; allow that grace to wipe away feelings of “otherness” and division, and then let that grace mold you and shape you and unite you, unite us all, as one in the body of Christ.
