Abusing and Misusing the Lord’s Supper (Stand-Alone Sermon)
1 Cor. 11:17-34
March 6, 2005 FBC, Chester Mike Fogerson, Speaker
Introduction:
Lovefeast (Agape)
Potluck or bring-and-share supper
Rich/poor
But in giving this instruction, I do not praise you, because you come together not for the better but for the worse. 18 For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that divisions exist among you; and in part I believe it. 19 For there must also be factions among you, so that those who are approved may become evident among you. 20 Therefore when you meet together, it is not to eat the Lord’s Supper, 21 for in your eating each one takes his own supper first; and one is hungry and another is drunk. 22 What! Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you? In this I will not praise you. 23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me." 25 In the same way He took the cup also after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me." 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes. 27 Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. 28 But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly. 30 For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep. 31 But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world. 33 So then, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. 34 If anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, so that you will not come together for judgment. The remaining matters I will arrange when I come. 1 Cor 11:17-34 (NASB)
ETS: Paul gave instructions on how a troubled church should approach the Lord’s Supper table.
ESS: There is a proper way for a problemed church to partake of the Lord’s Supper.
OBJ: I hope you’ll allow God to speak to your heart in order to take communion in a worthy manner.
PQ: Who will ask God to point their sin out to them at the end of this service?
TS: Let’s look at two pointers on how to prevent the abuses and misuses of the Lord’s Supper.
I. Paul pointed out the church’s staggering problem with sin. But in giving this instruction, I do not praise you, because you come together not for the better but for the worse. 18 For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that divisions exist among you; and in part I believe it. 19 For there must also be factions among you, so that those who are approved may become evident among you. 20 Therefore when you meet together, it is not to eat the Lord’s Supper, 21 for in your eating each one takes his own supper first; and one is hungry and another is drunk. 22 What! Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you? In this I will not praise you.
A. Paul saw at least three sins that the church was struggling with at Corinth:
a. Divisions (v. 18)
1. Tearing, splitting the congregation
2. Rich/Poor (maybe theological, most likely socio-economic)
3. When the church met for the Lovefeast, instead of being one family, they went to divide into separate groups
4. Paul knew there were natural human tendencies for some homogenous human groups to form
5. Division=bad, Factions (v. 19)=maybe not neutral, but natural
b. Selfishness (v. 22a)
1. Because the division existed, not everybody was given the same amount of food (give chicken salad to 3 or 4 people and neglect the rest)
2. Rich people pigged out-poor people had wish sandwiches
3. Agape feast may have been the only decent meal some of the poorer members regularly had; and to be treated so scornfully by the richer members not only to hurt the poor folks’ stomachs, but also their pride.
b. Drunkenness (v.21b)
1. To some, the feast had turned into a drinking party
2. One gets everything, the other, nothing
d. (v. 20) Paul says, "You’re not meeting to take the Lord’s Supper
1. Might be in your buddies tearing the church to shreds, selfish self, drunk...you’re NOT to eat the Lord’s Supper.
2. To Paul it made no difference if the right words were spoken/actions performed if the condition of the church’s fellowship/spirit of its members stood in sinful contradiction to the true meaning of the Lord’s Supper.
3. Physical cravings were being satisfied, communion wasn’t.
B. What Paul said in v. 20 could be said at any Bible-believing church in the world today (might say in your bulletin, table’s ready, bread’s baked, juice is poured...you’re not having Lord’s Supper)
a. We wouldn’t think of coming to the Lord’s Supper table drunk, would we?
1. Some will come with bad feelings, angst, case of the reds towards others and not be considered a big deal.
2. Some won’t talk to this one or that one and not be considered a big deal.
3. I’m not encouraging you to be civil, rather I’m exhorting you to be Christ to them.
b. We’re not eating the Lord’s Supper of we come struggling with a sin problem.
C. (IL) Common cup (Graduation at St. Mary’s)
a. How many would drink from the same cup? "Yuck" factor (bacteria, unhygienic, viruses)
b. Many of us have the potential to taint the cup today, and we don’t even have a common cup.
1. Sin, bitterness, angst, hard hearts
2. Infects the whole body
TS: Lord’s Supper is a visual sermon (body/blood). Lord’s Supper reminds us that there is forgiveness-"While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."
II Paul pointed out the church’s strategic plan to deal with sin. Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. 28 But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly. 30 For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep. 31 But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world. 33 So then, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. 34 If anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, so that you will not come together for judgment. The remaining matters I will arrange when I come.
A. Prior to coming to the Lord’s Table, the believers at Corinth were told to examine their hearts.
a. "Examine" or "judge" is used 6x’s between vs. 28-32. There was an important significance to looking at their own spiritual condition.
b. v. 31-32 If they would judge themselves, God wouldn’t have to.
c. Examine, judge, confess sins to God to come to the Lord’s Table with a prepared heart.
B. There is an intentional/deliberate dealing with our sin that must be accomplished prior to coming to the Lord’s Table (it’s important that we prepare our hearts for the Lord’s Supper).
a. Unworthy manner? What’s up with that?
1. Does that mean?
aa. We shouldn’t take the Lord’s Supper unless we have sinless lives?
bb. If we can think of any way in which we don’t measure up we shouldn’t participate?
Both answers are "no"
2. Christians commit sin (only God is sinless)
b. Examine yourself (don’t worry about the guy on the opposite end of the pew, or on the other side of church).
1. God’s Word blurts out to us "Take a look at yourselves!"
2. We’ve been warned to steer clear of the Lord’s Supper table if we’re insensitive to God’s presence, unloving to fellow church members.
3. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 1 John 4:11 (NASB) It’s impossible for a true Christian to get closer to Jesus while at the same time he is separated from his fellow believers.
4. We can’t come to the table if...
aa. Unbeliever
bb. Believer with hearts not right with God
cc. Believers with hearts not right with his fellow Christians
C. (IL)
Conclusion:
Does anyone have anything they’d like to share with the church?
