Tonight, we are on what seems like holy ground as we consider together the centrality, significance and purpose of the Lord's Supper, communion, the Eucharist, the breaking of bread.
This central ordinance handed down by the Lord Jesus himself as a means of grace to his church is not just a gracious provision from our God, but also the flashpoint of dispute.
It is certainly true that the four words, this is my body, are the most controversial and divisive within the history of the church.
It is the interpretation of that phrase that sees the core difference in doctrine and practice between the Catholic and the Protestant church.
The Catholics literally interpret the phrase, this is my body, as that of transubstantiation, that during the elevation of the bread and the wine, the substances are miraculously transformed into the actual body and actual blood of Jesus Christ.
This became their practice in 1215 at the Lateran Council.
Thus, in the Mass, Christ is really physically present.
The result being that grace is imparted to those present.
In Roman Catholic theology, every time the Mass is celebrated, the sacrifice of Christ is repeated in a real sense.
The Protestants, on the other hand, believe that the bread and wine of the Lord's Supper do not change into the body and blood of Christ.
Rather, the bread and the wine symbolize the body and blood of Christ.
Christ, therefore, is spiritually present in a special way as we partake of the bread and wine together in faith.
It is a remembrance of Jesus' sacrifice once for all for us on the cross of Calvary.
It is a looking back to the past, a celebrating in the present and a hope for the future.
However, even within the Protestant tradition, the frequency, focus and meaning, means of celebrating communion is multifarious.
And our purpose this evening is not to catalogue, not to comment on the rights and wrongs of each,
but to dig into the Bible's teaching and see how it informs our thoughts as to this fundamental privilege we have been given in Jesus Christ.
In Acts 2, they write this.
They, that is, the early church devoted themselves.
They devoted to themselves.
This was their focus.
This was the things that they were passionate about doing together.
They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.
So whatever conclusions we draw, if we are to follow the pattern of the fledgling church at the beginning of Acts,
we must be devoted to this.
The Lord's Supper is not an optional extra.
It is not a peripheral affair.
It is not a sideshow event for the church of Jesus Christ.
It is absolutely integral to the health, worship, and communal life of the congregation,
as it is locally expressed in the local church.
In his large book, Peter Leinhart, Blessed are the Hungry, is the title of the book, writes this.
The Lord's Supper is the world in miniature.
It has cosmic significance.
Within it, we find clues to the meaning of all creation and all history,
to the nature of God and the nature of man,
to the mystery of the world, which is Christ.
It is not confined to the first day for its powerful seven.
Though the table stands at the center, it stretches out to the four corners of the earth.
That book that Leinhart writes is about 370 pages long.
And the last paragraph says,
I have only managed to write a short treatise on the depth of significance there is present in the Lord's Supper.
And we have about 25 minutes.
So all I want us to do is to go through 1 Corinthians 11 verses 17 to 34.
And I have five perspectives, five views that I think the Lord's Supper gives us.
Five things that we see as we celebrate this together.
So let me read 1 Corinthians 11 verses 17 to 34.
Paul writes this.
In the following directives, I have no praise for you, for your meetings do more harm than good.
In the first place, I hear that when you come together as a church, there are divisions among you.
And to some extent, I believe it.
No doubt there have to be differences among you to show which of you have God's approval.
So then, when you come together, it is not the Lord's Supper you eat.
For when you are eating, some of you go ahead with your own private suppers.
As a result, one person remains hungry and another gets drunk.
Don't you have homes to eat and drink in?
Or do you despise the church of God by humiliating those who have nothing?
What shall I say to you?
Shall I praise you?
Certainly not in this matter.
For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you.
The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread.
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.
In the same way, after supper, he took the cup, saying,
This cup is the new covenant in my blood.
Do this whenever you drink it in remembrance of me.
For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup,
you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.
So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner
will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.
But everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup.
For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ,
eat and drink judgment on themselves.
That is why many among you are weak and ill,
and a number of you have fallen asleep.
But if we were more discerning with regard to ourselves,
we would not come under such judgment.
Nevertheless, when we are judged in this way by the Lord,
we are being disciplined,
so that we will not be finally condemned with the world.
So then, my brothers and sisters,
when you gather to eat, you should all eat together.
Anyone who is hungry should eat something at home,
so that when you meet together, it may not result in judgment.
And when I come, I will give further instructions.
The Corinthian church, when Paul writes, is about 10 years old.
It is a church of great giftedness.
If you've ever read 1 Corinthians, they are very gifted.
Paul says that you have been gifted spiritually in every way in his introduction.
It is a greatly gifted church, but it is also a church in grave danger.
It is suffering from factionalism, gross immorality,
and serious confusion on certain issues.
This teaching on the Lord's Supper in chapter 11
is part of the central block of the letter
where Paul is correcting and arbitrating
between various factions within the church
who see differently on various matters.
These issues are seemingly prompted by a letter
written to Paul by the Corinthians
asking for his clarification.
The beginning of this section is chapter 7, verse 1,
where Paul starts it,
now for the matters you wrote about.
He's seemingly going through them now
and addressing their various concerns.
And throughout this section,
Paul is giving a good but style of argument.
He wants to affirm something,
but then say, but also remember this.
On these issues where there is such a divergence of opinion
within the church,
he doesn't want to further polarize
by saying you must do it this way
and all these guys get the hump.
So he says, it's good,
but trying to bring the different sides together
to a point of at least understanding.
So for example,
on the matter of celibacy in chapter 7,
he says, it is good for a man
not to have sexual relations with a woman.
He is promoting celibacy.
And then he says,
but since sexual immorality is occurring,
each man should have sexual relations
with his own wife
and each woman her own husband.
He is therefore affirming marriage.
He says, yes to celibacy,
but also yes to marriage.
Or on the gift of tongues in chapter 14,
I thank God I speak in tongues more than all of you.
He affirms that gifting.
But in the church,
I would rather speak five intelligible words
to instruct others
than 10,000 words in a tongue.
He says it's good,
but I affirm this
and I affirm this.
Like the Aldi advert.
But I like this one
and I also like this one.
He's trying to bring them together.
However,
when we start this section
in chapter 11, verse 17,
he doesn't say this is good,
but
he says this is all a catastrophe.
Look at verse 17 again.
In the following directives,
I have no praise for you
for your meetings do more harm than good.
When you come together,
it is explosively wrong
and there is more collateral
than there is blessing.
He then goes on to do
what I think points out five views.
He gives us five things
that we should be aware of
as we come to the Lord's table,
as we come to take communion,
as we do the Lord's supper together.
And this, I think,
is the first view we get.
A view of the one body.
The first thing I think
Paul wants us to understand
as we do this
is the one body.
This is the first place
Paul goes in his critique
of the practice of Corinth
in the first five verses.
He says some people come
and they eat
and they get drunk
and people come later
and they're hungry
and they wonder what's going on.
It is not the Lord's supper
you are celebrating, he says.
And I think a bit of cultural information
helps us understand
what's at the real kernel
of this critique.
Corinth is under Roman control.
It works on a 10-day week.
During that 10-day week,
they have two days off,
one at 5 and one at 10.
The early church is running
on a Hebrew 7-day week.
And therefore,
the days off in the Roman calendar
and the days off
in the Jewish calendar
hardly ever align together.
The normal practice is
that the church is meeting
on working days,
which helps to explain
why they normally meet
either early in the morning
or late at night.
And so,
when it comes to the breaking of bread,
a thing they would normally remember
late at night,
people turn up for the meeting
at different times.
So, for example,
if you're a wealthy aristocrat
who doesn't go to work,
you think,
oh, I'll turn up to church
about 2 o'clock in the afternoon.
And who else turns up
at 2 o'clock in the afternoon?
Well, all the other wealthy aristocrats.
And what do you bring
at 2 o'clock in the afternoon?
Well, you bring a lovely picnic.
And you have a bit of table fellowship together
before the Lord's Supper
is celebrated in the evening.
And you have a wonderful time.
Bit of caviar, perhaps,
some langoustine,
a lovely pinot grigio
to wash it all down.
2 o'clock.
And you're having this wonderful
love feast together
of table fellowship.
You turned up at 2.
Well, the next people to turn up
are the business people.
They've worked at 9 to 5,
5 o'clock, clocking off time.
Let's go straight
to the church meeting.
Well, your wealthy aristocrats
have been on it
since 2 o'clock.
And their table fellowship
is in full flow.
But the business people
come along.
They bring a slightly
smaller packed lunch,
which is probably
not from Waitrose.
Let's go for Sainsbury's.
And they're sitting down.
And it's quite a cheap burlough,
but there's lots of it.
And so they start tucking in.
Now, the last people
to turn up would be the slaves.
About half the Roman world
is considered a slave.
And there's a multitude
of different slaves,
from the footwashers
to the private tutors
and household managers
in the aristocrats' houses.
They turn up last.
They probably turn up
with nothing.
And so by the time,
later on in the evening,
it finally comes round
to this pinnacle moment
of celebrating
the Lord's Supper.
You've got the wealthy people
who are well fed
and full of the grigio.
The business people
who have tucked in,
eaten their fill,
and are by no means
going thirsty.
And then the slaves
who come in last.
Hungry, tired, and thirsty.
And so when they come
to the centrality of this meal,
rather than show
the oneness of the body,
it really only shows
the divisions there are
amongst them.
That they've turned something
that was so central
into an absolute farce.
Something that's meant
to celebrate
how they are one
in Christ Jesus
has really become
a place for people
to exhibit
their own wealth,
their own selfishness,
selfishness,
with absolutely no regard
for others.
And this goes against
what the Lord's Supper
is meant to be.
The Lord's Supper
is supposed to be
the centre and symbol
of the church's unity together.
That it is,
in what we remember
at this point,
the cross of the Lord Jesus,
that everyone finds
a place together.
We sing that song,
I think we're going to sing it later,
beneath the cross of Jesus,
I find a place to stand.
As everyone's humbled
under grace,
they're unified together.
And yet when they come round
to remembering the cross,
because of all that's proceeded
during the afternoon
and later on into the evening,
only goes to show
just how divided they are.
As those that have been
on the Pinot Grigio
sing Waltzing Matilda
in a raucous way,
and everyone else
is drowned out
by the rumbling stomachs
of the slaves
that have just wandered in.
Back in chapter 10,
verse 16,
Paul draws this parallel
even tighter.
He talks about
what goes on
at the Lord's Supper
about being a participation
in the body
and blood of Christ.
In verse 14 onwards.
That word participation
could also be,
is normally rendered fellowship.
So what is the church?
It is the fellowship
of the body
and blood of Christ.
It is those that are brought
into fellowship together
by all that this represents.
And yet when the Corinthians
get together,
it looks anything
but a fellowship
closely knitted together
by this.
So as we take communion,
the first view we get
is of the one body.
It is of our oneness
that we all come to the cross
wretched,
helpless,
and hopeless
and we stare at one
who won for us.
No room for boasting,
no room for pride,
no room for division.
We all get there
on the merit
of someone else.
And therefore,
what we celebrate together
is to be the centre
and symbol
of our unity.
unity.
That in this,
we have fellowship
with God
but we also have fellowship
with each other.
This is to be
a glorious pinnacle
of our communal life
together.
And so as I come
to the end of my time
at Brunsfield,
one of my biggest regrets
is that we've never managed
to find a way
to all take communion together.
As a whole church.
Now I don't think
our
10 o'clock service
and our 11.30 service
is anything like
what we see in Koret.
I don't think
I've ever seen
a Pinot Grigio
at 10 o'clock.
I don't think
it's that same thing.
But if this is to be
the centre
and symbol
of our united life
together,
then it is painful
to think
that we've never
quite managed
to do it all together.
Whether we've
managed to make
communion
the centre
and symbol
of our unity
as one.
So I ask you
as I ask myself
as I ask all of us
together,
do we love
our traditions
or our freedom
more than we love
Jesus
and want to celebrate
and put on display
the unity
that is all of us
all together
through his son
centred and symbolised
by the Lord's Supper.
I have no answers
to that.
I have no agenda
behind that.
I just think
that as I've read
this this week
there's been
a chiming
between the way
that we do it
and what it is
meant to symbolise
and to be
the pinnacle
of our unity
together in Jesus.
And as I said
at the beginning
I think it is
for the health
and flourishing
and prosperity
of the church
because it's
so important
that we get it right.
So the first view
I think we see
is of the one
body.
The second view
I think we see
is of the crucial
cross
verses 23 to 25.
I think
I discovered
this week
what is probably
the most shocking
thing
I've read
in the Bible.
That on the night
the Lord Jesus
is about to suffer
and die
for sinful humanity.
The night
where he gathers
his disciples
together
to celebrate
the Passover
something he says
I have been
eagerly waiting
to eat with them.
Before he
is rejected
by all of them
walks the lonely
cross all the way
up Calvary alone
where he's nailed
to a cruel Roman
cross to bleed
and die for each
of us
as the very
centre of
world history.
And what does
Jesus say to them?
Remember me.
Don't forget me.
Don't gloss
over me.
Don't take me
for granted.
Keep this event
front and centre
in your life.
That seems
outrageous to me
that somebody's
going to do this
most sacrificial
act
for each
of us.
And Jesus
the night
before it
happens
says don't
forget.
Jesus
our Passover
lamb
the ultimate
fulfilment
of all that
the Passover
symbolises.
Jesus
the one
whose blood
means that
God's wrath
against sin
will pass
over us.
Jesus
the one
who ultimately
redeems us
from the final
enemies of sin
death and Satan.
Jesus
who leads us
out of darkness
and slavery
into light
freedom
and the
promised
future.
And Jesus
before he
makes all of
that a reality
says don't
forget me.
Remember.
And to
help you
remember
I've got
some symbols
to serve
as an
aide memoir
which is
my best
French.
I've got
these symbols
to focus
your attention
and bring
you back
to the foot
of the cross.
Bread
is a symbol
of my
body
broken
for you.
Wine
is a symbol
of my
blood
shed
for you.
And he
says take
and eat
this regularly.
Take
and drink
this
regularly
so that
you don't
forget me.
So that
I don't
start to
drift
onto the
periphery.
So that
I don't
start to
become
something
that you
have a
passing
fascination
with.
in the
same way
Israel
were to
celebrate
the
Passover
once a
year
to
remember
all that
they
were
in
Egypt
and
all
that
they
now
are
by
God's
grace.
Jesus
says remember
this
often
so you
can remember
what you
once were
without me
what you
now are
because of
me and
one day
that you
will be
with me.
he says
do this
regularly
as a
constant
reminder
of all
that I've
done for
you on
the cross
because
you'll
forget.
And as
I thought
this week
I thought
I forget
all the
time.
The minute
I leave
here I
start leaking
gospel and
the cross
of the
Lord Jesus
moves from
here to
here as
I go on
through my
working week.
from the
minute I
leave church
on Sunday
I all
too readily
think that
my acceptance
before God
depends on
my own
performance.
I all
too quickly
forget my
identity in
Christ and
start to
cleave to
other things.
In an
instant the
price Jesus
paid for me
from the
grip of sin
is overlooked
and the
lure of sin
becomes
incredibly
attractive.
Every week
every week
the cross
of Jesus
moves from
here to
the long
grass way
out left
and Jesus
knew I
would do
that.
He knows
you will
do that
and he
says I've
got these
symbols for
you to
help you
make the
cross front
and centre
in your
life.
Jesus
gives us
the Lord's
Supper to
give us a
regular view,
a reorientating
view of
Jesus Christ
and his
cross.
his death
for us.
We need
the Lord's
Supper to
do exactly
what it
says in
the song
Abide With
Me that
I'm still
rehearsing
round and
round in
my mind
to stop
me freaking
out.
Last
verse,
hold thou
thy cross
before my
closing eyes,
shine through
the gloom and
point me to
the skies,
heaven morning
breaks and
earth's vain
shadows flee,
in life and
death,
O Lord,
abide with
me.
that's what
we're doing
as we come
here.
We have a
view of
the one
body and
we have a
view of
the cross.
And the
third view
we get is
a view for
the unbeliever.
It's there in
verse 26.
For
whenever you
eat this
bread and
drink this
cup, you
proclaim the
Lord's death
until he
comes.
This is not
an in-house
ritual.
The Lord's
supper involves
proclamation,
it involves
heralding,
it involves
the announcement
of good
news.
This is a
visible
word.
I think
this can
perform a
miraculous
function in
the life of
the unbeliever.
prayer.
That if you
get this
right, this
really provokes
people to
consider who
the Lord
Jesus is and
whether what
he says he's
done, he's
done for
them.
That as we
have this at
the centre of
our communal
life, it
shows us that
central to our
Christian faith
is this event
that Jesus
lived, that
Jesus died,
and that Jesus
has risen again.
if you make
it really clear
at the beginning
that this is
what we do in
remembrance of
our Lord and
Saviour, you
point out that
you can't
remember someone
that you do
not know, so
therefore communion
is not for the
unbeliever, but
please stay.
And as we
take time to
remember, maybe
you would take
time to consider
who is Jesus,
what has he
done, and what
does it mean to
follow him?
And I know
from the experience
of friends that
as they come to
church and they
sit there and
the bread and
wine comes along,
it provokes them
to make a
decision, who
is Jesus?
Why did he
come?
Is he real?
Is he significant?
Do I have need
of him?
That it can be
this visible
word provoking
people to think
about eternal
things.
It shows those
visiting that the
very core of all
we believe is what
happens on that
hill at
Calvary, on that
day in history
where Jesus dies
for a sinful
world, that
everyone who
puts their
trust in him
will be
graciously gifted
eternal life.
That is what
we're all about.
And we make
that so central
in our lives
that we celebrate
it together at a
feast that Jesus
welcomes us to.
love.
It shows us that
this message we
remember, this
cross that we
gather around, is
about Jesus who
unites us, saves us,
frees us, forgives us,
and gives us hope
forever.
Also in this verse,
even just reading it
out, the unbeliever's
mind is blown.
For whenever you
eat this bread and
drink this cup, you
proclaim the Lord's
death until he
comes.
Absolutely intrinsic
in that second half
of the verse is the
concept of
resurrection.
Because how can
somebody who died be
coming again, had he
not been raised,
ascended, and stands
to come and welcome
us into eternal
things?
And therefore I
think it's clear from
1 Corinthians 11 that
this is a visible
word.
A visible word for
the unbeliever to
consider the claims,
to consider the
person, to consider
the gospel, to
consider the free
invitation of eternal
life that is uniquely
found in Jesus
Christ.
And if we explain it
well, we can
proclaim it without
saying anything.
In the bread and
the wine, the body
and the blood, the
suffering and the
death of Jesus
Christ.
A view of the one
body, a view of the
cross, a view for the
unbeliever.
Fourthly, a view of
yourself.
Look at verse 28.
Everyone ought to
examine themselves
before they eat of the
bread and drink from
the cup.
When we come to the
Lord's supper, it is a
time to do business
with God.
It is not some
empty ritual.
It is not something
that we just do.
It is not what we use
to just fill 15 minutes
at the end of a
service or an hour
on a Sunday.
It is a regular
opportunity for self
examination.
It is a time to
take an honest look
at ourselves, a
long look at the
cross and realise
afresh our absolute
need of Jesus and his
death for us.
It is a time to
assess where I am
failing and faltering
in my life and
apply the good news
of Jesus'
grace to every
corner.
It is a time where
we are confronted
time and again
regularly by our
need of Jesus
Christ.
Just as food and
water are to be the
regular sustenance
for the physical
body, so for the
spiritual body, our
regular need is
sustenance from the
Lord Jesus.
As I come weak and
compromised by sin,
the Lord's
supper invites me to
examine myself and
to bring the sin that
is lurking in the dark
recesses of my heart
into the healing,
restoring light of
Jesus Christ.
The Lord's supper is
a regular Rubicon
moment where my
confessed sin is
removed as the
truth of the gospel
is applied.
And just as the
first Passover meal
was celebrated before
the actual wrath of
God passed over,
so we eat this in
confidence that the
judgment God will
bring on us and will
be passed over us
because of their
sacrifice.
The Lord's supper
reminds me that I
am more sinful than
I can possibly imagine
but more loved than
I could ever dream.
And it brings those
two and superimposes
them on and gives me
confidence to go
another week.
It's a delicate
balance to get right.
We're not examining
ourselves in endless
introspection, building
this feeling of
disqualification,
unwelcomeness, and
being crushed by our
sinfulness.
It's not about coming
in an unworthy manner,
as in with sin present
in our lives, because
none of us would come.
It's about having a
right view of ourselves
as sinners and coming
with an absolute
confidence that our
greatest need in life is
Jesus Christ, who is
the only remedy for that
sin.
We're not coming to
examine ourselves so as
to disqualify ourselves.
We're coming to examine
ourselves in order to
see our sin, which is the
only qualification to
come to this table.
And so the unworthy
manner is to come with
unconfessed sin, to come
in a blasé manner, to
come unthinking or
indifferent, to just go
through the process as if
it was just another meal
with another group of
people.
The way we examine
ourselves is to see
our sin and our need of
Jesus and bring those
two together so that we
might know cleansing.
And as Paul ramps up in
the rest of the chapter,
there's real implications,
there's a real warning if
we get this wrong.
If we rush in, if we don't
consider, he talks about
people who take it
arrogantly.
I don't think he's
particularly applying it to
those that do it
ignorantly.
He's doing it to those who
do it arrogantly, those
with unconfessed sin,
those who are sitting,
breaking bread with people
where there's real rupture
in fellowship.
And he says there's a real
warning that God takes
this so seriously that he's
ready to pour out temporal
judgment on people in the
form of discipline who
hold this too lightly so
it was not to care.
A warning of weakness,
illness, and some of the
saints in Corinth have even
died by getting this wrong.
Just seeks to show how
passionate God is about
remembering his son together.
We need to be very clear.
There is not always a
straight line between sin
and ailment.
There really isn't.
A lot of it just comes as a
result of being fallen people
in a fallen world.
And yet God is so sovereign
he's able to redeem that
even for his own glory.
But there are times where
there is a straight line.
Where we get things wrong and
God is so passionate about
what we're getting wrong.
He'll bring discipline in our
lives to get it straightened
out.
Just ask Ananias and
Sapphira back in the
beginning of Acts if you
don't think that's true.
Scarily, sometimes the
judgment is not always
discipline in the form of
illness.
Sometimes it can be God
withdrawing his hand of
discipline and leaving us to
our own foolishness to reap
our own destruction until we'll
come back.
I think we see that in the
life of the prodigal son he's
able to sink all the way to
the bottom.
In order that that will be the
discipline that will make him
turn and come home.
Paul is very clear here though
that the Corinthian church has
suffered God's judgment because
they treated this too lightly.
They didn't examine themselves.
It just became another thing they
went to.
Another thing they did, they were
more concerned about bringing
their packed lunches to the
feast than they were about
bringing their sin to the cross.
It gives us a view of ourselves
and finally, it gives us a view of
the future.
One of the things that Peter
Leinhart does in his book is he
traces the idea of eating with God
throughout the Bible and it's quite
exciting.
In Eden, before the fall, every meal
was eaten with God.
It's the epitome of their intimate
fellowship together.
A place you didn't have to say grace
and give thanks to God because you
could just give thanks to God because
he was there.
However, what happens at the fall?
We get independent eating.
We get Eve eating.
We get Adam eating.
Eve was the first woman in history
who discovered that self-indulgent
eating led to not having the right
thing to wear.
The story of the Old Testament then
becomes the story of humanity
eating alone.
There are glimpses.
Abraham eating with the mysterious
figure Melchizedek in Genesis 14.
Moses, Aaron and his sons and the
70 elders eating in God's presence
on Mount Sinai in Exodus 24.
The glimpse of consuming the tithes
in celebratory thanksgiving in the
presence of the Lord is a regular
cycle in Deuteronomy 14.
All these partial glimpses
that show what they lost
through their sin at the fall.
Eating in fellowship with God.
Eating in perfect communion.
Once it was all the time.
Now these are sporadic anomalies
throughout the history of Israel.
And then the New Testament comes.
A new dawn rises.
And you particularly see in Luke's
gospel that God is eating with
people again.
In the person of Jesus Christ.
The second person of the Trinity.
He eats a lot in Luke.
He's endlessly being criticized because
he eats with sinners and tax collectors.
He has fellowship with the wrong people
around the table.
And then the pinnacle of these meals
with Jesus is in the upper room as
Jesus redefines the shadow of the
Passover in himself.
A meal he leaves with them.
And his church is a lasting reminder of
the new covenant he sealed with his blood.
And a continuing ordinance to celebrate
Jesus' special presence with them
in this sacrament.
However, this is only a temporal thing.
It's only a stopgap for the interim.
One day the fellowship of Eden will be restored.
The intimacy of a meal will once again
be an unbridled reality for everyone
who is in Christ Jesus.
For in the very symbolism of the Lord's
supper is the truth that Jesus is coming back.
We do this until he comes.
The certainty that Jesus will come to marry
his bride and in the new creation
partake of the fruit of the vine
at the wedding feast of the Lamb.
A place where the separation of sin
will be removed and face-to-face fellowship
with God will be our perpetual delight.
A place where the Lord's supper will not
be present because no one at that point
will fall failure of the sinner
forgetting the cross.
This will no longer be necessary.
This is sustenance for the saints
for the journey home.
The Lord's supper is a glorious thing.
An astounding privilege.
A meal of such theological depth and significance
that we haven't even scratched the surface tonight.
However, I hope that you have seen
what this shows.
These five different views.
It gives a view of the oneness of the church
as we eat together.
It gives a view of the centrality of the cross
and helps keep it front and centre in our lives
and to orientate all of our lives
towards the Lord Jesus.
It gives the unbeliever, those outside of Christ,
a view of their necessity to be inside of Christ.
What does Jesus say in John 6?
Unless you eat my body and drink my blood,
you have no part with me.
And that in a symbolic sense is what we do
around this table.
It offers us a view of ourselves
and demands regular self-examination
so that our sin can be brought to the cross.
And it is something that is dangerous.
We can't partake of it arrogantly or unthinkingly.
And it's a view of the future
where we're heading,
heading back towards intimate fellowship
in God's perpetual presence in the new creation.
I don't think we can end in a better place
than the Westminster Confession,
chapter 29, article 1.
I'm sure you were all going there in your minds.
It writes this,
Our Lord Jesus,
in the night wherein he was betrayed,
instituted the sacrament of his body and blood
called the Lord's Supper
to be observed in his church
unto the end of the world
for the perpetual remembrance
of the sacrifice of himself in his death,
the sealing of all benefits thereof
unto true believers,
their spiritual nourishment and growth in him,
their further engagement in
and to all duties which they owe unto him,
and to be a bond and pledge
of their communion with him
and with each other
as members of his mystical body.
Let's pray.
Father God, we're so sorry this evening
that we all too readily forget
about your Son
and his cross
and his death for us.
And Lord, we thank you so much
that you've given us this meal
in order that we may not forget,
in order that Jesus might not just fade
into the background,
but you've given us this meal
that he might have
the central significance
in each of our lives.
And so Lord,
as in a few moments
we celebrate this together,
help us to examine ourselves rightly
and bring our sin
to the cross,
knowing
that it is at the cross
that our sin was paid for in full.
Father, help us do business with you
in this time.
Help us to remember you appropriately,
worshipfully,
thankfully,
meaningfully.
And as we do that,
Lord, would you nourish us
and meet with us afresh.
Father, the only confidence
we have to ask any of this
is because of your Son, Jesus,
who loved us
and gave himself for us.
Father, help us in this time, we pray.
Amen.