Remembering Christ
Living Hope Baptist Church, 03 February 2002
Matt Black
1 Corinthians 11:24 “ . . .this do in remembrance of me.”
Introduction: Please open your Bibles to I Corinthians 11:24. This passage concerns the Lord’s Supper, but I just want to focus on the Lord’s purpose in this verse. The last part of the verse says, “this do in remembrance of me.” (haced esto en memoria de mí.) It appears here according to our text, that it is possible for Christians to forget Christ. In fact, the Lord does not just suppose that it might happen, He is saying, do this so that you might remember me! You will forget me, he is saying. This is the truth brethren! We all too often forget the Lord. Your conscience and mine are the witnesses to this fact. We forget the Lord more than we remember Him.
It seems impossible that those who have been bought by the blood of the Lamb could ever forget the One that paid that terrible price, but it is true. We so often forget Him who NEVER forgets us. Can we forget the One who NEVER forgets us? Not only do we forget Christ, but it is easier for us to remember almost anything else but Christ. What happened yesterday in the news? What was your conversation with your neighbor today? Yes, we remember the details of this world. We remember the details of those things that are going to pass away. We think and think upon those things that will never give us any real satisfaction in life, but remember the Lord? Yes there are times when we do remember the Lord. We may think upon him each day. But how long do those thoughts linger with us? Your conscience will tell you that our thoughts of the Lord so quickly vanish into the business at hand.
What is the cause of our forgetfulness of Christ? Why do we forget Him? I find at least two reasons. The first is this: even though we are regenerate people, even though we have become a new creation in Christ, we still have with us a great propensity to sin. Brethren, our souls are regenerate, but our body is not! Within my body there are evil desires and lusts. There are horrible thoughts that pass through my mind. There are the passions of this world that I wish I could rip out of my body and forever be done with them. There is the sinfulness of Adam in every one of us. That lust for pride and pleasure that Eve sought after when she took the forbidden fruit is always with us.
There is coming a day, when we will be forever rid of these lusts in our bodies. Our body will be changed at the second coming of Christ. Corruption will put on Incorruption! We will forever be done with wicked thoughts, evil passions, and wrong desires. We will be done with sin forever!! I cannot wait for that day.
But that day is not here yet. It may be that I will not finish my next thought, and the Lord will come! He will come at a moment when we do not expect Him. But until that moment we must realize the reality of our the constant temptation to think on everything else around us, except Christ.
You say, but this should not be so. Look at how wonderful Christ is. It is pure pleasure to think of him. What is this world in comparison to Christ? It is nothing! It is filthy rags compared to the Mighty God Who was born into this world to save His people from their sin. Look at the mercy and compassion He demonstrated. It is wonderful to think on Christ. He came into this world with the beautiful praises of angels singing “Glory to God in the highest!” But he left this world in a loud shriek as He lifted up his voice and shouted, “It is finished!” What was finished? He finished paying for your sin. All of the wickedness in our flesh and in our mind has been paid for! Is there anything more wonderful to remember? Our guilt is gone! Our sin is nailed to the cross! Our punishment has been put upon the Lamb of God. He has taken it all. Every sin has been put upon Him! Every single one! Even sins that you and I have committed that we may not even remember—those have all been paid for. Do nothing for your salvation. No, you don’t have to do anything! Not one thing! Just enjoy what our Lord has paid for. Enjoy what He has already done. Tell it to the world: I have been delivered from hell! Think on that just for a moment, and everything in this world will pass away. Just think of yourself in the flames of hell. Think of that fate that we all deserve: the separation, the pain, and the emptiness. Think of yourself in the deepest agony of heart. Your heart is broken, and tears constantly flow from your eyes. Then think of the deepest physical pain. It never leaves. It is always hurting you. You cannot help but scream out because the pain is so harsh. You grind your teeth in deep agony. You cry out, but no one can help you! No one is there. No one. You call out, but you are completely alone. The flames surround you. You go on in this horrible pit for five minutes, and it seems like an eternity! You continue five years, and you cannot imagine another second. You cannot take it any longer! Not one moment longer. But hell goes on and on. A hundred years pass, but it has just begun. A thousand, a million, a billion. It does not matter, it never, never ends. But now let us imagine that you have bee set free from these flames! Let me set you free to tell the world what you have been delivered from. Brethren you do not have to imagine. This is true. You have been set free from hell! Remember what Christ did to see you free. He took that punishment! He took it all for you!
I have one more thought before I close, and that is this: There is great benefit in thinking upon the Lord. You may be here tonight and you feel a great sense of guilt. You may think that you can never be forgiven. You have tried to be better; you have tried to reform yourself, but each time you fail. And each time you feel more guilty. Once in a while you find that you are able to keep yourself from sin, and it makes you feel better, but it is not long, and the guilty feelings return. The Lord has said ’The soul that sinneth it shall die;’ and you feel that you must die for you are guilty. But wait! I have comfort for you! I will tell you some words that will give you peace in the deepest part of your soul! Listen to me. I know of One who has paid for your sin completely. And I know that if you have believed on Him, your sins are all forgiven. And so you see, all your guilt is turned to joy in a moment when you think upon the Lord. All the guilt disappears, and in it’s place a deep love is there. All you want to do now is think on the Lord, because there is such comfort and peace! You will tell the world “Come and listen to me, and let me tell you what God has done for me!”
Yes thinking of Christ gives us hope under a sense of sin. But there is another benefit that I want to bring to you tonight. There may be someone here, and you say “ I have been persecuted and made fun of because I love Christ. I cannot take it any longer. I love Christ but I just do not know what to do.” What can I say to you? How can I bring you comfort? First I would say to you, that you should remember Christ. Remember when he was betrayed by man. What did he say? He said "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." Now what is your suffering compared to His? We cannot compare the sufferings of our life to what he suffered. Think on Christ. Remember him. Yes you may be persecuted, and you may suffer shame from those you love the most because of your love for Christ, but remember what our Lord has said to you “Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for great is your reward in heaven, for so persecuted they the prophets that were before you.” My brother, remember Christ, and rejoice!!
When I was a child, I remember how wonderful it was to think about God. I remember thinking, “If I could just think about the Lord all the time, I know I would be happy.” You know that it was the Holy Spirit of God drawing me who said that to my heart? And you know, that wisdom from a child’s heart is true right now. If you spend the rest of your moments and days thinking of Christ constantly, not a moment will be wasted. “This do in remembrance of me.”
