The Lord's Supper

The Lords Supper

1 Corinthians 11:23-28

Meals are special. And I’m sure all of us have a favorite meal that we like and get served our birthdays and such. But there is no other meal more special than the one in which we are getting ready to partake in the Lord’s Supper.

Some call it the Lord’s Supper; others call it Communion or Holy Communion. But no matter what you call it; it is a very special time that we have with our Lord.

This is Memorial Day Weekend and for some it is a time of picnics and cookouts and an extra day off work. But it is a time where we remember those who have passed on. It is marked by parades; speeches; flags and flowers are placed on the graves of many servicemen. It was first observed on May 30, 1868, for the purpose of decorating the graves of the Civil War Dead. Now, it remembers all of those who died in the wars our nation have fought. I think as well, we would be wise to remember someone who fought the greatest battle there ever has been. Jesus Christ defeated sin and it’s punishment when He willingly gave His life on the Cross.

So this morning let me give you a few things in which this Holiday weekend and everyday that we should reflect on. But before we begin let me give you a little background. The first time we hear about the Lord’s Supper was when Jesus and His disciples were in the Upper room celebrating the Passover.

Remember the Passover had happened about 1000 years before Jesus instituted this supper. He took a reluctant man in Moses to fulfill a promise that He had made to Abraham that the children of Israel would have what is known as the Promised Land. But after the promise, the children of Israel sinned against God and became the captives of the Egyptians.

So God then prepares and sends Moses to the leader of the Egyptians, Pharaoh, and tells him to let the Israelites go free. Time after time, plague after plague, Pharaoh says no and when he did say yes then he would go back on his word. So God tell Moses I have one more plague that will cause Pharaoh to let My people go. He says at Midnight the firstborn of all the Egyptians shall die, but none of the Children of Israel’s children will die.

So then He instructed the Children of Israel on what is know as the Passover. He tells them that they are to take a lamb, a male without blemish. And they were to kill that lamb and take some of the blood and put it on the doorpost and on the lintel of the house where they would eat. And they where to take the meat of the lamb they sacrificed and cook it and then eat it. And that night it says in…

Exodus 12:13 Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.

So then He goes on to tell them this was not a one-time thing.

Exodus 12:14 So this day shall be a memorial and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord throughout your generations.

So now we pick back up with our story with Jesus in the Upper Room getting ready to celebrate this Passover. But this time Jesus shocked them. He tells them I am now to be the Passover. I will pour out My blood and not just for the Jews but also for everyone. Because when God sees My blood He will Passover the sin and the judgment that goes with that.

Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

So with that in mind, let me give you some things to remember about the Lord’s Supper.

A time of Commemoration (Vs. 23-25)

It is a time to remember. Did you ever think that Jesus never tells us to remember His birth? But yet that is probably for many the most popular of religious Holidays due to the gifts received or all of the football that is being played.

He does not tell us to remember His life, although what an example He set while He walked upon this earth. Now there is nothing wrong with remembering His birth and His life but His commandment, not His request was for us to remember His death.

When I see people who profess that they are a Christian but they just don’t see the need to attend church then I ask them this question. When was the last time that you took communion? You see like church attendance it was not a request; it was a commandment. The Bible does not say, when you feel like it or when you get the time; it says, “DO THIS in remembrance of Me”.