Scripture: Mark 14:22 - 26; 1 Corinthians 11:23 - 26
Theme: Thanksgiving - For Eucharist
Proposition: 3rd in a series of sermons on Thankfulness - Thanksgiving. This sermon centers on being thankful for God's Gift of Eucharist and what it means to share this gift with God and with one another.
Intro:
Grace and peace from God our Father and from Jesus Christ, Our Savior and LORD!
Good morning!
I believe that our English language is amazing. Each year we seem to add hundreds of new words/phrases that are designed to replace old words/phrases. For example here are a few new words or ideas that are to being used in place of ones that some people feel have lived out their usefulness:
+We use to say that when people suddenly had an idea they were experiencing an "AHA Moment". That is now old fashioned and should be discarded. The new phrase you are suppose to us is that people are experiencing or have experienced a "Light Bulb Moment".
+We use to promote the word teamwork. "Teamwork" meant that a group of people from different areas of a company were purposely working together to accomplish a goal or a realize a vision. Well, the term teamwork is on its way out. Now working together is to be called - "cross functional capability".
+And when someone doesn't believe you or the facts that they see in front of them we are not to just think that they are crazy. We have a new term to describe them. That new term is the word - "denialist". They are not crazy they are being a "denialist".
Sometimes, I wonder if somewhere in the world there is a group of people who sit around just thinking of new terms to use so that they can impress others. However, when you think about it even in the church we have over time used a great many words to describe the same thing. It all depends on whether you were raised in what would be called "high church", "common church" or "low church".
For example:
+What do you call the place where the pastor lives?
-Parsonage, manse, rectory or vicarage?
+What do you call the space just outside of the sanctuary where people gather together?
-Foyer, Narthex, Vestibule or Lobby?
+What do you call the person who is called to share Word and Sacrament in your church?
-Clergy person, Reverend, Priest, Pastor, Shepherd or Preacher?
And as we look at the sacrament at the front of our sanctuary this morning, what normally do you call it?
Is it the Last Supper? Is it the Lord's Supper? Is it "THE MEAL"?
Is it " Holy Communion"? Is it "The Table"? Is it "The Breaking of Bread"
Or is it the term that I would like for us to look at this morning - EUCHARIST?
Actually, it is all of them. All of them are the terms that are most commonly used by those in the Catholic Church, the Lutheran Church, the Presbyterian Church, the Methodist Church and the Church of the Nazarene. Throughout history the sacrament that Jesus gave to us immediately before His arrest, trial, crucifixion and resurrection has been called by a number of different names. Some have even used the term "FIRST SUPPER" referring to the fact that Jesus instituted a new meal to replace the Passover Meal.
In our tradition we don't use the term "Eucharist" very much. It's a term that is alluded to in scripture but didn't gain momentum until around the end of the 1st century ( The Didache). It is a term that ancient Early Church Fathers Ignatius of Antioch and Justin Martyr used. It originates from the Greek word meaning "THANKGIVING". We see it when the Apostle Paul wrote to the Church at Corinth about the Lord's Supper.
"For I received from the LORD what I also delivered to you, that the LORD JESUS on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks (eucharisteo) he broke it, and said, 'This is My Body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me." (1 Corinthians 11:23 - 24).
This month we have been looking at things we can celebrate with thanksgiving. We have looked at the gifts of both FRIENDSHIP and CREATION. Both of those things are God's Gifts to all of us. We are to give thanks for our friends and we are to give thanks for this Good Earth that the LORD has given to all of us.
This morning, I would like for us to take a few moments to look at this sacrament - this "Lord's Supper", "Holy Communion" or "Eucharist" and reflect on its true meaning and how we are to rejoice and be thankful for it.
I. Eucharist is A Sacrament
Depending on whether you were raised in a Catholic Church, a Protestant Church or one of its sister churches can determine how many sacraments you consider that Jesus gave us. Our Catholic friends believe that there are 7 (seven sacraments) -
- Baptism, Confirmation, the Eucharist, Penance (Confession), Anointing (Holy Unction), Marriage and Holy Orders.
-Our Anabaptist friends normally count three - Baptism, Communion and the Washing of Feet.
-Our Salvation Army and Quaker friends do not hold to any sacraments but believe that all the things that we do in this life can be sacramental in nature.
-In our tradition we hold to the standard Protestant doctrine that there are two sacraments - Baptism and Holy Communion/Eucharist.
We believe that the LORD Jesus Himself ordained these two great sacraments. Two great sacraments that are to be seen as an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual divine grace. Two great ways that God shares His gifts and graces with all of His Children. Two great ways that all of us can be connected as being a part of the Body of Christ.
What else can we know?
II. Jesus Instructs us to take Eucharist/Lord's Supper
While we may not all fully agree with how many sacraments that we are suppose to observe, we all agree that it is necessary for us to take Holy Communion/Lord's Supper/Eucharist together.
We believe that Jesus instituted this sacrament and that He instructed us as His disciples to share this sacrament with one another.
We know from reading the book of Acts that the Early Church took Jesus' instruction very seriously. They regularly received Holy Communion. We know from reading Paul's letters that it was taken very seriously in the Gentile Churches.
While we don't have a great deal of records sharing with us the exact nature of how the Early Church conducted their worship, there is evidence that at least by the second century (100 - 200 AD) most Christian fellowships were sharing Holy Communion weekly.
They would gather together on Sunday (the Lord's Day) and after having a time of worship, prayer, confession and a sermon they would end the service with the sharing of a fellowship meal. At the end of that fellowship meal (Love Feast) they would share the Lord's Supper/Eucharist.
You may remember that for the first 300 years or so the Early Church did not have many if any at all actual structural buildings called "churches". Before Emperor Constantine it was illegal for Christians to build a sacred "church building".
Recently, archaeologists have discovered what they consider to be the oldest church structure in the world. It is located in a cave underneath Saint Georgeous Church in Rihab in northern Jordan. It dates back to 230 AD which makes it the oldest "proper" church in the world. (https://www.rt.com/news/worlds-first-christian-church-found-in-jordan/)
So, where did the early Christians meet? Where did they gather together to share worship, pray and have Holy Communion/Eucharist? Bible scholars tell us that Christian communities gathered in people's homes for the first 300 years. It was only after the time of Constantine that "church buildings" were legally allowed to be constructed in the Roman Empire.
And on several occasions, the Apostle Paul makes reference to people meeting in different people's homes (Romans 16:3 - 5; Colossians 4:15 - see also Acts 1:13). Early Church Fathers like Clement of Alexandria wrote how their congregations meet in different houses to share worship and the Lord's Supper.
So, you can see in that setting it was relatively easy to gather together on a Sunday for a time of worship, share a meal together and end the time together with the Lord's Supper. Each week these early Christians reminded themselves of God's ultimate love and the power of God through His Holy Spirit by sharing a common cup and bread.
By the time of John Wesley most Anglican churches continued to celebrate communion weekly. One of Wesley's most famous sermon was entitled, "The Duty of Constant Communion". Wesley's Journals tell us that for a period of time John would receive communion on a daily basis. Wesleyan historians tell us that from about the age of 22 to his death at 88, Wesley received communion an average of once every four to five days.
However, by the time our tradition got under way, the practice of weekly communion had withered. The practice of taking Holy Communion had so withered that in some churches by the turn of the 20th century the Lord's Supper was all but forgotten. It was often seen as being "Catholic" and the thought was that if one took Holy Communion to often then it would lose its significance. However, the same ones making that argument never felt that way about music, prayer or the sharing of the World.
By the 1950's it was common practice to only share Holy Communion once a quarter at most. And when the church did share communion it was usually surrounded by a cloud of heaviness. Communion services were never upbeat. More often than not you left a communion service feeling guilty. Added to all of that was the fact that Church meals were becoming a thing of the past and no one even thought about ending a church fellowship meal with sharing Holy Communion.
In more recent times all of this has changed. There is a revival towards the sharing of communion. There is a revival in celebrating the joy and thanksgiving that is to accompany Holy Communion. In many churches the goal is to share communion at least once a month while some have adopted the idea of sharing Communion weekly.
The truth is the Lord did not give us any instructions concerning how often we are to receive Eucharist/Communion. The only instructions that Jesus gave us was that each time we took Holy Communion we were to do it in "remembrance of Him."
So...
III. What are we actually doing when we take Communion/Eucharist?
+Eucharist/Lord's Supper is an Invitation to Enjoy and Exalt Jesus
When we take communion/Lord's Supper it is this wonderful invitation to be able to lift up Jesus as our Savior and Lord. It is this wonderful opportunity for us to remember that in Jesus we have been rescued and redeemed. It this amazing time that we remind ourselves that in Jesus we can be freed from both the power and the penalty of sin. That in Christ we are Born Again.
When we look at the Table it reminds us that Jesus Christ is center stage. The Table, the Cup and the Bread all point us towards Jesus. The Table reminds us that our Jesus put Himself on the Altar of Sacrifice so that He (God's Son) could take the penalty of our sins instead of us. Jesus died so that our sins would not be held against us but against Him. Jesus took upon Himself every sin, every vile thing we have ever said or did.
The Cup reminds us that Jesus shed His blood for us. Jesus gave up his life force for each and every human being that has ever lived on our planet. Jesus gave up Himself to die on the Cross of Calvary. Jesus' blood was shed for the remission of all our sins.
The Bread reminds us that Jesus gave His body for you and me. Jesus called Himself the Bread of Life (John 6:35). The bread reminds us that Jesus' body was broken for you and for me and that through Jesus we can experience everlasting life.
The Bread also reminds us that Holiness is both supernatural and material. Holiness is more than just having a redeemed heart. Holiness is only holiness as it is both received and lived out. Holiness is material. Holiness is touchable. You can hear it, see it, smell it, taste it and touch it. Holiness requires for us to have a body - a body that has been rescued and redeemed and a body that lives out holiness in everyday life. Even when we are resurrected we will have a body - a body that will live out holiness forever and ever and ever.
The bread reminds us that we must worship not only in truth but in actions. The bread reminds us that Jesus came to bring all of us abundant life in the here and now. The bread reminds us to put our holiness, our relationship with God in material terms.
All around us are 8 step, 10 step and even 12 step programs. Each program is designed to help us become better people - free from addictions, from bad habits and from things that will cause us great harm.
Jesus gives us a wonderful 1 step program - Repentance - in Christ we can find true freedom and life. The bread and the wine are symbols of the sacrifice that Jesus gave so that we might possess and experience true freedom today and in the life to come.
+The Lord’s Supper/Eucharist is an invitation to be refreshed by God's Holy Spirit
Some years ago there was a family getting ready to share communion at their church. When it was time for them to go to the altar rail and receive communion one of their children tried their best to hurry them along. He told them - "Hurry, mom and dad, let's go get some Christ!".
Let's go get some Christ!
There is a mystical element to communion. While our tradition does not believe that the wine and the bread are turned into the actual body and blood of Jesus we do believe in what is sometimes called the Presence of Christ.
While there is nothing magical about the bread and the wine (Welch's grape juice) there is something special and sacred that happens. There is a connection that happens. There is a grace that is given to us when we receive communion. There is a means of grace that happens through the infilling power of the Holy Spirit.
We can miss it of course. We can approach the Table of Our Lord and feel nothing, experience nothing and just take a moment to swallow a small cup of juice and chew on a piece of bread.
But we can also experience a renewal. We can experience an anointing of the Holy Spirit as we are reminded that we are a Christian people, a holiness people and a missional people. We can experience a renewed closeness to the LORD. We can experience God's agape love in a variety of ways.
Some years ago a family gathered together to celebrate a birthday. They did it the way I am sure many of us have shared birthdays. They shared a meal together, had a great time of fellowship and at the end of the meal they did something special. They had prepared a special cake to top off the celebration. The cake was designed to remind everyone that this day was different than other days. This day was a day when one of their family members had been born. This was the day to celebrate their being alive.
Birthday cakes are designed to be more than just mere cakes. You can have cake every day of your life but when you introduce a birthday with a cake it becomes extra special. It becomes more than cake. It becomes a living symbol of a human life. It becomes a living symbol of a life that has come into our world.
That is the same way it is with the LORD's Supper. It is more than just a cup of juice and a little piece of bread. It is much more than a mere ritual. Holy Communion/Eucharist symbolizes New Life - New Birth - New Birth that will lead to Everlasting Life. New Birth that comes from the Spirit above.
+ The Lord’s Supper is an Invitation to Connection
We are only a few days away from Thanksgiving Day. Most of us will sit down with family and friends and share a meal. Some of our family will be Republicans while others will be Democrats, Independents or members of some other party. Some of our family will hold to conservative values while others will be a little more liberal. Some of our family will come from nuclear families while others will come from broken families. Some of our family will have a college background while others will have a vocational or trade background or no higher educational background at all.
But once we gather around the table we will be family. We will put aside all the differences and we will eat from the same table and will share the same food. We will all be connected around the meal.
It is to be that way with the Lord's Meal - Eucharist/Holy Communion.
When Jesus gathered his disciples around that First Communion meal they all did not think the same way, have the same backgrounds or even believe the same way. But around the cup and the bread they connected and became One.
If we allow Holy Communion to do its sacramental work it can bring an end to differences and disunity. It can challenge and enable us to experience even more unity and connectivity. It can be a spring board to becoming closer to the LORD and to One Another.
In John 17, Jesus prays for His followers to be One with Him, the Father and the Holy Spirit. He also prays that they be One with One Another. That is the power of Holy Communion. It brings us to a common table, to a common cup and to a common bread. It causes us to remember that we are One in Christ - One Body, One Baptism and One Faith.
+The Lord's Supper is a reminder of His Second Coming
Finally, this morning as we celebrate Eucharist - we celebrate the Lord's Supper because it is a forever reminder that Jesus is Coming Again and that we must be ready.
There is a part of Eucharist/Holy Communion that causes us to look backward. Backward to the Cross, to the Sacrifice and to the Death of Our Savior and LORD.
But there is a bigger part that causes us to focus on the Resurrection and the Life to Come one day on the New Heaven and New Earth. The Scriptures tell us to do this "until Jesus comes again" (1 Corinthians 11:26).
The first time Jesus came to this earth, He came as the Suffering Servant. He came to give His life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45). Jesus accomplished that mission. Jesus went to the Cross and gave His Life for every human being on our planet. That is the past.
Today, Holy Communion points ahead. It reminds us that Jesus is coming again. Jesus is coming as King of Kings and Lord of Lords! Jesus is coming again and we must make sure that we are ready to meet Him as our Savior and LORD.
As one person puts it, when Jesus comes again - it will be point; game; set; match; winner”…it's all over and yet it all begins!
Holy Communion/Eucharist reminds us that this life - what we have right here and now is not everything. There is something bigger and better. There is something more than what we are experiencing here and now.
Yes, in Eucharist/Lord's Supper/Holy Communion we experience the Presence of Christ. We experience His Love and His Grace but one day we will actually be seeing Christ at the Head of the Table and all around us will be the Saints from on High. We will be sharing the Messianic Meal with Moses, Ruth, Elijah and the Apostle Peter. We will be sharing the meal with John Wesley, Billy Graham and a bazillion other members of our family that we don't know right now.
Holy Communion reminds us that One Day Jesus is coming to take us all to our new home - the New Heaven and New Earth. Eucharist reminds us that King Jesus is coming to take us to enjoy everlasting life. Everlasting life where there is no sorrow or sin. Everlasting life where there is no pain or disease or heartache or death. Eucharist/Lord's Supper reminds us of what Life will be one day.
Eucharist reminds us that we are to keep our lives holy before the LORD as is our reasonable service (Romans 12:1-2). Eucharist reminds us that we are to be thankful to the LORD for what He has done and what He is currently doing in our lives today.
So, as we close the service I invite you to Jesus' table. To partake of the symbols of New Life. To join with the rest of us as we acknowledge Jesus Christ as Our Savior and LORD. To join with us as we proclaim that Jesus has saved us from our sins, has rescued us and redeemed us. To join with us as we continue to walk the walk of progressive holiness - spiritual formation. To join us as we celebrate Jesus' resurrection and our future resurrection.
A Service of WORD AND TABLE
Blessing/Prayer
