[0:00] 1 Corinthians chapter 10. 1 Corinthians chapter 10. Usually when you hear Communion Sunday, you think 1 Corinthians chapter 11.
[0:16] Today we're going to chapter 10. Chapter 10. The reason we're going there is because of verse 16.
[0:29] 1 Corinthians chapter 10, verse 16. For the cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the Communion of the blood of Christ?
[0:41] The bread which we break, is it not the Communion of the body of Christ? Let's have word prayer. Dear Heavenly Father, I pray this morning that we would forget everything else that is around us.
[0:55] Forget everything else that's going on in our lives, in the world. May we, as our motto says, look unto Jesus this morning. May our focus be there.
[1:07] Jesus came to this world, sacrificed Himself, that we might have eternal life. That we might have a home in heaven.
[1:20] That we might have a friend that sticketh closer than a brother. That we might have someone who walks with us day by day, every moment of every day.
[1:30] Lord, we thank you for the Lord Jesus Christ and what He did. We thank you for the care and concern, as was mentioned to me earlier today, before the foundations of the world, you had a plan.
[1:49] Lord, thank you. I pray that you would help us this morning to forget everything else and just concentrate on Jesus Christ and what we have because of Him.
[2:01] Lord, minister to our hearts during this time, we pray in Jesus' name. Amen. I'm going to start this message a little differently than I normally would. This morning, I'm going to ask you to use your imaginations.
[2:14] I want you this morning to take your imagination and I want you to picture a scene. Beautiful, wonderful scene.
[2:25] And that scene is the King of heaven and earth has called us to a banquet. The Lord God of heaven has called us to come to a feast to honor His Son.
[2:41] The table has been set, it's prepared. Jesus is sitting at the head of the table. people, you and I have been invited to sit at that table.
[2:53] We have a personal invitation to be a part of this feast. Look around the table and you see you and I.
[3:05] You see each of us. If we know the Lord Jesus Christ is our Savior, you see each of us there. You see other friends that you have who are Christians. You see us all there for one purpose, to bring honor to the Son of God who came and gave His life for us.
[3:26] He is sitting there. Men and women, boys and girls have been invited to be there and He's sitting there and He receives us as guests, honors us as friends.
[3:43] He has prepared a feast for us. Can you imagine such a scene in your mind? Looking out and seeing all of that.
[3:56] We've been asked to eat with the King of glory. Were He a physical King, and this was a physical kingdom, you and I have been invited to feast at His table.
[4:07] We would certainly prepare ourselves for it, wouldn't we? We'd be ready for that occasion. Picture a state dinner with the President of the United States.
[4:19] Think of how you would dress. Think of the decor. Think of the demeanor that you would have. Think of the attitude. Think of the language that you would use. We've been invited to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords table.
[4:37] God's prepared a feast in honor of His Son. We have before us a symbolic feast that He has for us.
[4:48] We have a feast in front of us that reminds us of who Jesus is and why we have the opportunity to be invited to this feast.
[5:00] I've chosen this verse in 1 Corinthians 10 because it's the only place in the Bible where it refers to the Lord's Supper, Lord's Table, whichever you call it.
[5:13] It's the only place that refers to it as communion. We come in communion and I want us to get what that idea means. What is communion with God?
[5:24] When we come to this, what is it all about? The word communion comes from a Greek word that means partnership. It means participation, if you can say it.
[5:37] And it means fellowship. We come to participate in a partnership and have fellowship with the King of Glory.
[5:50] When we come to this, I want us to think this morning about what it really is we're doing. And to go along with that, Paul adds something else in verse 17. Look at verse 17 there of chapter 10.
[6:03] For we being many are one bread and one body. For we are all partakers of that one bread. We're partakers.
[6:15] It's the same word as communion there. We are come together to participate together. As I was thinking about this, he says, many are one bread. And I got thinking, how do I illustrate that?
[6:29] How many of you make bread? I've got a bunch here that do. All right. You take the flour or whatever you're using to make the bread. You take that and when you take it out of the packaging, there's all kinds of little pieces.
[6:47] And you spread that all in there and everything. But when you get all done, you have one loaf of bread. All kinds of little pieces. If you've ever had flour get away from you while you're doing that, you know it goes everywhere.
[7:02] And it takes you forever to get it all cleaned up because there's all kinds of little pieces. But you bring it together and you get one loaf of bread. He says, look, we're all coming together, all of us, to be one loaf of bread, to be one body in Christ.
[7:21] And when we come to this table, that's part of what we're doing. We're coming together as one. And the thing about it is whether you're coming to the Lord's table or as in these days, you were coming to an idol's table.
[7:35] What is happening? You're showing your identification. You're joining yourself with that thing that's in front of you. We come as joining ourselves with Jesus Christ.
[7:52] We become one with him. We become one, one with another. together. It's a unifying time. And this idea of coming together is a new thing for the people of God, but it was not necessarily a new thing at all.
[8:12] Back in Exodus chapter 24, you'll see the verses up behind me, the people had camped by Mount Sinai. God had just given them the Ten Commandments.
[8:25] And then they come together and in verse 9 of chapter 24 of Exodus, it says, Then went up Moses and Aaron and Nadab and Abihu and 70 of the elders of Israel. And they saw the God of Israel and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.
[8:48] And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand. Also they saw God and did eat and drink. They came together.
[9:00] God was ministering to them. They got to see his glory. And it says they ate and drank together while they were there. It's a lot of interesting things in that verse but the thing I want you to notice is God invited them to be there.
[9:18] Over in Deuteronomy chapter 14 beginning of verse 22 it says this, Thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed that the field bringeth forth year by year and thou shalt eat before the Lord thy God in a place which he shall choose to place his name there.
[9:38] The tithe of thy corn of thy wine of thine oil of thy firstlings of thy herds and of thy flocks that thou mayest learn to fear the Lord thy God always. He's bringing them together.
[9:50] They're going to have a feast there. They're giving of their tithe. Like I said a whole lot in these verses too. Let me mention one. Tithe. Tithe.
[10:02] Giving of a tenth of what God has given to you. There are people who say tithe is an Old Testament thing. Yeah, I might agree with that because the New Testament says we're going to give offerings based on our love for him which he thinks should be more.
[10:21] The tithe or the love offering that we give to him. Then in verse 26 of Deuteronomy 14 it says this, And thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after for oxen, for sheep, for wine, for a strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth.
[10:35] And thou shalt eat there before the Lord thy God and thou shalt rejoice thou and thine household. Again, I want to point out they were invited to be there and to eat before the Lord their God.
[10:50] God commanded them to come into his presence. God has invited us to come into his presence. When we come to communion time, when we come to this Lord's table, it's because God has invited us to be there.
[11:06] Excuse me. The Old Testament sacrifice and the meals that they had were to look forward to the coming of the Messiah.
[11:19] The time we'd be together with the Messiah. Today, we look back. We've already seen the Messiah come. We've already seen the Lord Jesus Christ come.
[11:30] We have seen his presence and we can come and truly commune with God because the Savior has already been here and already come. you know, even before this was set up, man had had an opportunity to have fellowship with God.
[11:53] Remember Adam and Eve in the garden? They got to fellowship with God on a daily basis. We have the opportunity to commune with God when we come but also now at this time we have a community opportunity to commune with God on a daily basis as well.
[12:11] But as a group, as a church, we come together to have time with him. In the future, they'll be rejoicing.
[12:22] They'll be eating in the presence of God in the future as well. If you remember when Jesus had his last supper with the disciples, one of the things he said to them was Matthew 26, 29.
[12:37] But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.
[12:47] There's going to be another time we're going to get together. We're going to have a feast with God. We're going to be invited to that table. We're going to be invited to that marriage supper of the Lamb.
[12:58] Revelation 19, 9. And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they that are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.
[13:11] Blessed are those that are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. Who's called? Those that have accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior.
[13:22] Those who have asked him to come into their life and to save them and to change them and allow him to come into their life and live and rule there.
[13:34] From Genesis to Revelation, God's aim is to bring his people back into fellowship with him. So, a healthy church is going to be one that tries to recapture that vision of God and us together in fellowship united around him.
[13:59] See, when we come here, a lot of times I think we come and it's communion time and we come and we like, well, I'm about to have a cup of juice. I'm about to eat part of a cracker and then we're going to sing a song and then we're going to go home.
[14:17] Well, you already know that's not what we should do. We should, first of all, think about the fact that Jesus did this for me. Jesus gave his life for me.
[14:29] That's what all this represents. But can I go a step further? When we do this, he is here. Think about that for a minute.
[14:41] When we do this, he is here with us as we have this communion time. If you're saved this morning, where is Jesus?
[14:56] He's inside of you. He's inside of each one of us who's saved. Jesus is here this morning. He's not literally in the cup or in the bread like some denominations teach, but he is here because he's in us.
[15:15] He is here in our presence because we're a church. Not the building, the people who have Jesus living within them.
[15:27] He is here communing with us. When we come to this table, it should be a matter of I am having supper in the presence of Almighty God.
[15:40] And I think sometimes we forget that. We just kind of okay, here we go again. actually this first time for those who are visiting, this is the first time we've done it in a few months because usually during this time, as somebody mentioned, we have a lot of visitors that come in during these summer months.
[16:01] So I'm a little shyer about doing this, but we're glad you're here today to do this with us. when we come to this Lord's table, we come in the presence of our king.
[16:15] And there's some things we need to think about as we get ready to do this. First of all, the king decides who's invited. The king decides who's invited.
[16:27] We are coming to this table because the king invited you. Not me, the king. you think about it. Jesus didn't invite just everybody to that supper in the upper room.
[16:44] He invited believers. He didn't invite everybody in Jerusalem to come. He invited believers.
[16:56] You know, Jesus, when he set this up, made it a church practice. He made it something that the church does. When they get together, again, who's the church? Not the building.
[17:06] People. So, those of you who are Christians, we invite you to do this with us, to be a part of having communion, because you're part of the church, you're part of the family of God.
[17:20] We have this supper so that we can all be reminded of who Jesus is and what he did for us. Second thing, God, the king deserves honor.
[17:37] The king deserves honor. How do we honor him for having invited us to be here? Well, first of all, you know from over in chapter 11, we've done enough sermons from over there.
[17:50] The first thing is we need to examine ourselves. When we come to this table, why are we coming? Well, you've already said it because Jesus died for us and he was buried and he rose again and it reminds us of all that.
[18:04] Yeah, it does. That's part of the reason we do it. But why are you sitting at this table? There's something about that. Examine yourself.
[18:15] Why am I participating in this? Because Jesus did that that you said. But are you doing it just for that reason or are you doing it because I love him with all my heart?
[18:26] I want to have fellowship with him. I want to have communion with him. I want to. Why are you doing it? Well, because the church does it.
[18:37] Not a good reason. Why are you doing it? What kind of frame of mind are you in as you come to do this? Well, you need to get this done and over with.
[18:50] I've got to be somewhere at such and such a time. No. Hurry up. I used to, you know, old days, those of you who are older, you remember the old days, you say, because I got a pot roast on the stove at home and we got to get home to it.
[19:02] Nobody does that anymore, do they? So, can't use that. Am I living in obedience to the word of God and what it teaches?
[19:19] Am I coming to show that I'm living in obedience to what God wants me to do?
[19:33] As I come to this table and God is looking at me across the table, Jesus is looking at me, what does he see? Does he see someone who loves him with all of his heart?
[19:46] Is he pleased with what he sees? Is he happy? Well, I think I'm doing okay. Other people tell him I'm doing okay. But does God think you're doing okay? As you stand there before him, you sit there before him and you look, how does he think you're doing?
[20:02] And along with that comes the second thing then. As we look at how we're doing, is there sin that we need to confess? We need to confess any known sin.
[20:14] Is there sin in your life? I mean, that's usually what we think of. When I say examine yourself, that's usually what people think of. Well, I've got to get my heart right before I take communion. Yes, that's true. But is it just a matter of, oh, I've got to get my heart right, or, you know, I really can't do this because I've offended God.
[20:33] I need to get that offense taken care of. I need to make sure my heart is right with him. He came to destroy sin's power over you.
[20:46] He came to set you free from all that. Are you allowing him to set you free, or are you holding on to sins in your life?
[20:59] Does he have control over your tongue? Does he have control the last four or five or six weeks we've talked about love one another, be kind to one another, be members one of another, and others one another.
[21:17] Are we doing those things? As we come before him are we looking at those things? Do you have worry, fear, resentment, anger? Get those things taken care of.
[21:30] Those are sins before him. So I'm going to come before him. I'm going to confess my sins before him. Surrender your life.
[21:42] Have I surrendered my life to what he wants? Have I surrendered my life to what God, he came and he gave his life for me.
[21:55] What should I do? I should give my life for him. He came and he offered himself. do I offer myself to him?
[22:08] Is your life surrendered to what God wants you to do? And then a fourth thing, when you think about all that, express gratitude.
[22:21] When you come to the table and you remember that Jesus died, buried, rose again so that you could have salvation, are you thankful for it?
[22:34] When you come to this table, are you thankful? Do you remember to thank him? So often in our day and age, people don't thank one another. Somebody does something for you and you kind of I was owed that.
[22:50] They should have done that for me. Jesus didn't have to do that for us, but he did. And are we grateful for what he has done?
[23:00] See, the scriptures basically teach us that those who do not honor the Lord at his table are not discerning the Lord's body.
[23:12] And in chapter 11, you know, it talks a lot about discerning the Lord's body, discerning what he did. And sometimes because we don't, he says you're eating and drinking damnation to yourself.
[23:25] And some sleep, some have died. it seems like so often we take the Lord's Supper so lightly when actually it's a matter of remembering what Jesus did for me.
[23:46] What he did for me. And now we have the attitude of loving him. we have the attitude of being grateful.
[24:00] We have an attitude that is so thankful for all that he has done. This morning, we're going to take time, just like we always do, to examine ourselves.
[24:13] We're going to take time to spend a few moments in prayer. And I might give a little longer than I usually do. Just so we can not just say, Lord, forgive me of my sins.
[24:24] Help me be ready for this. But so that we can look at ourselves and say, have I confessed my sin? Is my attitude right? Am I in love with God? Am I following him with all my heart?
[24:36] Am I just a chance to really look at ourselves and say, God, I want to be ready for this communion.
[24:47] I want to be ready to have this time with you, this fellowship at the table, this participation, that we can have together, that I can be one with you and with this congregation.
[25:01] So we can be united around the God who loved us so much that he gave his only begotten son. Lord, help me to love you with all of my heart.
[25:18] Take a few moments, spend some time in prayer, examining yourselves. God others.
[25:52] Thank you.
[26:22] Thank you.
[26:52] Thank you.
[27:22] Thank you. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your great love for us.
[27:34] We thank you that the Lord Jesus Christ came to earth to give his life so that we might have eternal salvation, as we talked about in Sunday school.
[27:47] We have an eternal salvation. Lord, I thank you for all that you have done for us in the way you have supplied the need.
[27:57] Lord, we think back to that time of your crucifixion. Your body was broken for us.
[28:08] You took the lashes. You took the nails. You took the humiliation. This should have been for us, but you took it.
[28:20] Father, thank you. Thank you for all that you have done. And Lord, may we be a grateful people. May we love you with everything that we have.
[28:34] Thank you, Lord. In Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
[28:44] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Thank you.
[29:23] Thank you.
[29:53] Thank you.
[30:23] Thank you.
[30:53] Verse 24, When he had given thanks, he break it and said, Take eat, this is my body which is broken for you. This do in remembrance of me.
[31:04] Father, we thank you again for the blood that was shed for our sins.
[31:33] without the shedding of blood there's no remission of sin without the shedding of blood there's no life Lord I pray and thank you you shed your blood so that we could have life and we could have it abundantly we could have it for eternity Lord again thank you for all that you've done in Jesus name Amen Amen Thank you
[33:03] Amen Amen Amen Amen Amen Amen Amen Amen Amen
[34:06] Amen Amen Amen Amen Amen Amen And then it says After the same manner also he took the cup when he had stopped saying this cup is a new testament in my blood this do ye as oft as ye drink it in remembrance of me Amen And as I always say in Matthew it says they sung a hymn before they went out let's stand and should be up on the screen behind us bow the knee Amen Amen Amen Amen Amen Amen Amen Amen Amen Amen Amen Amen
[35:07] Amen Amen Amen What a privilege to come into God's presence Just to linger with the one who set me free as I lift my eyes see his awesome glory I remember who he is and bow the knee bow the knee bow the knee bow the knee bow the knee He is king of all the ages bow the knee He is king of all the ages bow the knee God alone on his throne see him high and lifted up and bow the knee kneel before him all adore him as you live to love him more bow the knee in his hand in his hand he holds the power of creation in his voice he spoke and all things came to be yet he hears the simple prayer
[36:41] I bring before him when I humbly seek his face and bow the knee bow the knee bow the knee bow the knee bow the knee He is king of all the ages bow the knee bow the knee God alone on his throne see him high and lifted up and bow the knee kneel before him all adore him as you live to love him more bow the knee dearly father we just thank you that we can come into your presence your presence the Lord as we said today you are here with us you are right here right now
[37:53] Lord thank you for allowing us to be in your presence Lord thank you that we can have that opportunity because of what Jesus Christ did nothing we have done has earned this opportunity opportunity but Jesus Christ gave us the opportunity Lord we have not preached to unsaved this morning but there if there's someone here does not know you as savior Lord I pray that you would help them to understand what has gone on here today and understand the love and the reverence that we have for Jesus Christ and for what he's done for us how he gave us an eternal salvation Lord may they come and talk to me if they want to know more about it so I can take the word of God and show them how they can know 100% that they are on their way to heaven Lord for those here that are saved again we thank you we thank you for the opportunity to come and to bow the knee before you to honor you to worship you to thank you for all that you've done
[39:09] Lord be with each one now as they travel keep them safe as they go we pray this in Jesus name Amen Amen that was And he's Bangl...
[39:57] oh oh and here at the me all I have been ... Mira... how are you? what are these people to thank you ... thank you oh thank you Thank you.