October 9, 2016

The Lord's Supper: Keeping the Main Thing the Main Thing

Preacher: Josh Tancordo Series: Doing Church Biblically Scripture: 1 Corinthians 11:23–32

The Lord’s Supper: Keeping the Main Thing the Main Thing

This morning, we’re going to continue our sermon series on “Doing Church Biblically.” And these sermons are a bit unique because they’re actually functioning as a church membership class that’s designed to prepare those who are interested to start Redeeming Grace Church in two weeks. And so all of these sermons are aimed at specific topics related to church membership. 

And this week, the topic we’re going to be talking about is the Lord’s Supper. Maybe you could have guessed that, since last week we talked about baptism. The Lord’s Supper is the other ordinance or sacrament Jesus has given us. Some people call it the Eucharist, some call it Communion, I typically refer to it as the Lord’s Supper—it’s really the same thing. And I think there are probably two kinds of people in here when it comes to the Lord’s Supper. Some of you really find the Lord’s Supper to be a meaningful thing, and you’ve been missing it a lot during this start-up phase as we prepare to become a church. And then there are others of you who may have heard of it, but you really don’t know much about what it means. You don’t know if it’s just an excuse for people to eat in church or some kind of good luck ritual or what it is. 

So please turn with me to 1 Corinthians 11. If you’re using the Story Bibles we provide, that’s on page 794, or it will be on the screen. 1 Corinthians 11:23-32: “For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when 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 also he took the cup, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me." For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged. But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.

Here’s the main idea I’d like to bring out of this text: The Lord’s Supper helps us keep the main thing the main thing. And we believe the “main thing” is the gospel. The Lord’s Supper helps keep the gospel message about who Jesus is and what he’s done central in the church. Because it seems like we have this tendency to kind of drift away from the gospel. Kind of like this projector bulb here. I remember ordering this projector a few months ago, and believe it or not, I actually read a good portion of the owner’s manual. And yes, that was just as interesting to read as you all are thinking right now. But I read it because I didn’t know much about projectors. And one of the things it told me is that you have to replace the bulb every so often. You see, what’ll happen is that as we use this projector, the bulb will gradually get dimmer and dimmer until it finally goes out completely. And really, you want to replace it before that happens so you can have the best picture possible. And that’s kind of the way it works with us. We have a natural tendency to slowly drift away from the gospel. We tend to get way too caught up in life’s busy-ness and all the other things that occupy our attention and lose focus of the gospel. Our consciousness of the gospel slowly grows dimmer and dimmer. So God’s given us a way to corporately refocus our attention on the gospel as a church, and we call it the Lord’s Supper. And our main text in 1 Corinthians 11 reminds us of three things we should keep in mind about the Lord’s Supper, and we’ll spend the rest of our time talking about these three items: the significance of the supper, the message of the supper, and the sacredness of the supper. 

Significance of the Supper

First, the significance of the supper. Look again at verses 23-25 of 1 Corinthians 11: “For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when 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 also he took the cup, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.

So when did this happen? Verse 23 says that it happened on the night Jesus was betrayed, just a few hours before he was arrested and eventually crucified. Jesus and his twelve disciples had been travelling around together for about three years doing ministry in various regions of ancient Palestine. And now they were sitting in a room together eating a meal. But this meal wasn’t just any meal. It was the Passover meal. This was a very special meal Jews would eat to celebrate how God rescued the Jewish people back when they were slaves in Egypt. You see, way back in the Old Testament book of Exodus, it describes how the Jews were enslaved in Egypt. And God told the Egyptian king, referred to as Pharaoh, to let them go. But he wouldn’t do it. So God sent a series of ten plagues on Egypt to punish them for their disobedience. And after each of the first nine plagues, he gave Pharaoh an opportunity to obey, but Pharaoh always refused. So finally, God sent the tenth plague. He said, “I’m going to kill all of the firstborn sons in Egypt.” It was a pretty severe judgment. But thankfully, God provided a way for the Jewish firstborns to be spared. He told the Jews to kill a lamb and put the blood of that lamb on the doorpost of their house, and then the angel who was killing the firstborn sons would pass over those houses that had the blood on the doorposts without doing any harm. That’s why they call it the Passover, because the angel passed over those houses and spared those Jewish families. But it took the sacrifice of those lambs. 

So, in the years after that great rescue, the Jews celebrated this Passover meal by roasting a lamb and eating it every year to remember what God had done. The Old Testament Law actually commanded them to do it every year. And that’s what Jesus and his disciples were doing in that room. They were celebrating the Passover together. But even though this was something all of them would have done every year since childhood—since they were all Jewish—this Passover meal ended up being a lot different than any of Jesus’ disciples expected. Jesus took bread and broke it and said “This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” Then he also took wine and said, “This is the new covenant in my blood. Do this also in remembrance of me.

So do you see what he’s doing? He’s saying, “This Passover meal is now all about me. This bread is my body, and this wine is my blood. And just like those lambs were slaughtered way back when to rescue our people, I’m about to be slaughtered on the cross to provide the ultimate rescue.” 

You see, Jesus’ disciples may not have been fully aware of it at the time, but they as well as everyone else in the world were in a terrible predicament—a predicament even more perilous than the one the Jews were in back in Egypt. Every human being on earth was in a state of sinful rebellion against God. They had disregarded God’s commands and thumbed their nose at their Creator. And God in his holiness found their sin to be so vile that he was compelled by his own righteous nature to punish them forever in hell. That was their predicament, and that’s also our predicament before putting our trust in Jesus—guilty, vile, and condemned. As Romans 3 says, “there is no one righteous, not even one.” 

But that’s why the gospel’s such good news. That’s why Jesus is such a great Savior. He saw our predicament and our wretchedness, and he came to our rescue. In fulfillment of all that was foreshadowed in the Passover, Jesus was the ultimate sacrificial Lamb. And he gave his disciples a glimpse of it right there at that Passover meal. Just like the bread he held up at that meal, his body was torn. And just like the wine at that meal, his blood was spilled. And it happened just hours later. He was crucified on a Roman cross to pay for our sins. Every bit of God’s wrath against sin was poured out on him so it wouldn’t have to be poured out on us. And in that way, he balanced the scales of divine justice and made it possible for us to be reconciled to him and enjoy his presence for all eternity in heaven. 

So it’s at the cross where we see both the holiness of God and the love of God displayed in wonderful splendor. As one theologian named Augustus Strong has said, “God requires satisfaction [for sin] because He is holiness, but He makes satisfaction because He is love.” The holiness of God led him to demand payment for sin, but then his love led him to spill the blood of his own Son in order to make that payment. So according to Jesus, that’s what the bread and wine symbolize in the Lord’s Supper. 

Message of the Supper

And as we understand the significance of the supper, that leads us into the second item we can see in our main text: the message of the supper. So first we had the significance of the supper; now we have the message of the supper. Verse 26: “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.” So by eating the bread and drinking the cup, we’re proclaiming the Lord’s death. And there are some similarities here to a funeral service or a memorial service, especially when the person we’re commemorating died as a hero. I think of the September 11 memorial service at ground zero just a few weeks ago, and how one group that was honored was the brave passengers of Flight 93—those men and women who collectively took action and thwarted the terrorists’ attempt to crash the plane into the capitol building. They heroically sacrificed their lives in order to save others on that day, and we remember their heroism on September 11. 

And that’s similar to what we do in the Lord’s Supper as we remember Jesus’ sacrifice, but there’s also an important difference. Look at verse 26 again: “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.” Did you get that last part? “Until he comes.” So there’s a note of triumph here because Jesus is coming again. Yes, Jesus died for our sins, but he didn’t stay in the grave. He victoriously resurrected—and he’s coming again! So when we celebrate the Lord’s Supper, it’s not simply a memorial service like we might hold for heroes who have died. It’s actually more of a celebration as we eagerly anticipate seeing Jesus again. 

And not only will we be able to see Jesus again, we’ll even be able to eat and drink with him again—and enjoy all the close fellowship that eating and drinking entails. How do we know that? Well, in Matthew 26:29, as they’re having the supper, Jesus states, “I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.” So one day, we’re going to eat and drink with Jesus again, and it’s going to be a wonderful thing. So every time we observe the Lord’s Supper, we’re joyfully anticipating the ultimate Lord’s Supper in heaven. 

It’s going to be so wonderful that the Bible even compares it to a wedding feast. You see, one metaphor the New Testament commonly uses to describe the relationship of the church to Jesus is the relationship between a bride and a groom. So when we get to have the Lord’s Supper with Jesus face to face again, it’s described as a wedding feast. Revelation 19:6-9: “Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, "Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure"— for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. And the angel said to me, "Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb." And he said to me, "These are the true words of God.

That’s what we have to look forward every time we have the Lord’s Supper. As we take the supper, we’re taking it in joyful anticipation of the day when we’ll get to eat with Jesus face to face. Because as wonderful as the Lord’s Supper is to celebrate here on this earth, we understand it’s just a dim shadow of the real supper we’re going to celebrate with Jesus in heaven. 

So the message of the supper as we see back in our main text is that we’re proclaiming “the Lord’s death until he comes.” We’re proclaiming that Jesus has died and also that he’s coming again. And I believe one reason that message is especially powerful in the Lord’s Supper is because we don’t just hear it—we experience it. The Lord’s Supper helps us experience the gospel in a tangible, physical way—with multiple senses like taste and smell and touch. Because something is usually much more powerful when it’s experienced. I remember when I travelled to Bosnia on a mission trip a few years ago, I experienced the country. Before I went, there were plenty of facts that I could look up. I could get on the Internet and see that Bosnia has a population of around 3.8 million people. I could read about how the war of the early 1990’s devastated the Bosnian economy and left the country with a 43% unemployment rate to this day. I could read about how there were high tensions between Catholics and Muslims in the country as a result of the war. But it was a lot more powerful when I actually saw it. I walked the streets of the town of Gorazde, I talked with the people and visited a number of them in their homes. I saw the red caution tape that marked off a minefield that still hasn’t been de-mined. I experienced Bosnia. And in a similar way, I think one of the reasons the Lord’s Supper is so powerful is because it enables us to experience the gospel, in a sense. We touch the elements, we taste the elements, we consume the elements. And by doing that, we’re proclaiming the message that Jesus died and will also one day return to eat with us again. That’s the message of the supper, and we get to experience that.

Sacredness of the Supper

Then lastly in the text, main point number three, we see the sacredness of the supper. So we’ve looked at the significance of the supper, then at the message of the supper, and now we see that sacredness of the supper. Look at verses 27-32: “Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged. But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.

You may be wondering, “What in the world is going on here?” Well, here’s what was happening. Back in the early days of Christianity, the Lord’s Supper was typically tied to a church family meal. Doesn’t that sound nice? It’s pushing noon now, and I think I could probably go for a church family meal right about now. So every Sunday, churches would get together before or after their worship gathering and have a full meal. And everyone would bring their own food. And the Lord’s Supper was actually observed in conjunction with this meal. But the Corinthians believers weren’t really approaching things the right way. That’s why Paul gives them this warning here. You see, here’s what was happening. Look earlier in the chapter at verses 20-22: “When you come together, it is not the Lord's supper that you eat. For in eating, each one goes ahead with his own meal. One goes hungry, another gets drunk. What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I commend you in this? No, I will not.” So all the rich people were gorging themselves on the feast they had brought and leaving the poor people to go hungry. Poor people in the Roman Empire probably had to work on Sundays and didn’t have time to prepare food to bring to the worship gathering. So they were getting left out. So the church of Corinth’s meals together were characterized by selfishness, “clickiness,” and divisions. 

That’s why Paul gave them this stern warning we read in verses 27-32. He lets them know that taking the Lord’s Supper in an unworthy manner is a serious offense and can actually be hazardous to your health. Verse 30: “That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died.” Dang. God’s not messing around. You know your church has issues if people are actually dying because of their disobedience. So it would be wise for us today to follow Paul’s advice in verse 28 to examine ourselves also. Things may be a little different in our church than they were in the church of Corinth, but we always want to make sure we’re taking the Lord’s Supper in an appropriate way. That means, number one, you definitely need to be a Christian to take the supper. Someone who’s not a Christian yet should not be participating in a ceremony that was meant for Christians. And number two, before you take the supper, it would be a good idea to do a heart check and make sure you don’t have any sin in your life that you haven’t repented of. 

Conclusion

And if you’re good to go in both of those areas, you don’t have anything to worry about. Because the Lord’s Supper is certainly a sacred thing, but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be a time of rejoicing and celebration. Because as we take the supper, we’re celebrating the gospel. We’re celebrating the goodness and the grace of God. You know, we talk a lot about being gospel-centered here. When you think about it, what better way to be gospel-centered than to make the Lord’s Supper one of the highlights of our worship gatherings? We want to go back to the gospel again and again, recognizing that it’s the fuel that drives the Christian life. In recent weeks, Brian and I have been meeting up to go through the book of Romans together. And this past week, we went through Romans 3. And I’ll confess that I read Romans 3 in preparation for that meeting without really letting it sink deep into my heart. I had read it so many times before and actually had the book of Romans memorized at one time, so I just kind of read through it. But when I got together with Brian and he started sharing his thoughts on it, it was a powerful thing. 

You see, Brian just became a Christian a few months ago, and the memory of his unsaved condition is still fresh in his mind. And so when he went through Romans 3 and read a detailed description of how sinful everybody is before coming to Jesus and then read about God’s grace in saving us, those words sunk deep. And he gave me permission to share how, right there at his dining room table, he told me how powerfully those words had hit him, how he realized that he had been in that sinful condition just a few months ago. Those words had described him. And it was out of that dreadful condition that Jesus saved him. And as he was telling me all this, he about broke down on the spot. I could see the tears forming in his eyes. And that made me want to weep as well, as I thought not only about the truths of the gospel, but about the sterile, cold manner in which I had approach the text up to that point. And I prayed, “God, don’t let me be that way.” And a great way we can make sure we don’t become that way is by going back to the gospel and letting it really sink in again and again. And that’s what observing the Lord’s Supper is all about.

other sermons in this series

Feb 28

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Matthew 26: The Lords Supper

Preacher: Josh Tancordo Scripture: Matthew 26:26–29 Series: Doing Church Biblically

Oct 16

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Trusting in Man vs. Trusting in God

Preacher: Josh Tancordo Scripture: Jeremiah 17:5–10 Series: Doing Church Biblically

Oct 2

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