Worship & The Table of the Lord

For this month’s blog I wanted to set time aside to focus on the importance of communion. I have been reminiscing lately about my time in ministry at Ball State Christian Campus House and remembered a sermon series we did that was titled “The Wisdom of Christ.” I preached a message on “Worship & The Table of the Lord” in using 1 Corinthians 11:17-34 as the scriptural foundation of the sermon and I want to revisit this sermon with you in this blog.

In this passage of Scripture, the context for what is happening here is that Paul is addressing problems in the way the Corinthian believers were relating to each other and to the Lord while taking the Lord’s Supper. There needed to be order at the Lord’s Supper, which was not happening to well here in the church. As such Paul writes the following…

17 “But in the following instructions, I cannot praise you. For it sounds as if more harm than good is done when you meet together. 18 First, I hear that there are divisions among you when you meet as a church, and to some extent I believe it. 19 But, of course, there must be divisions among you so that you who have God’s approval will be recognized! 20 When you meet together, you are not really interested in the Lord’s Supper. 21 For some of you hurry to eat your own meal without sharing with others. As a result, some go hungry while others get drunk. 22 What? Don’t you have your own homes for eating and drinking? Or do you really want to disgrace God’s church and shame the poor? What am I supposed to say? Do you want me to praise you? Well, I certainly will not praise you for this!”
1 Corinthians 11:17-22 NLT

Needless to say, Paul is not thrilled with the divisions that are occurring when they gather for the Lord’s Supper. Early Christians did not meet in a church building, rather they met together in someone’s home at least once a week, which was usually on the Lord’s Day being Sunday. When they met for the Lord’s Supper, they did it as an actual meal with food and not only just juice and bread as an example. They had a potluck in essence where believers would each bring their own food to share with the community body for the Lord’s Supper, however they were not doing it together as the body of Christ in recognizing one another as verse 21 points out that they would hurry and eat their own meal without sharing with others.

The divisions that Paul speaks of in verse 18 may be quite likely the result of social discrimination when they shared meals together as you see in verses 21 and 22. Paul rebukes them in verse 19 giving an ironic expression on their claims to superiority based on distinctions among them. Paul is saying that though their divisiveness is clearly wrong, it will have the positive result of making clear who among them is truly faithful in their walk with Christ.

Then in verse 20 we read of when the believers meet together they are not really interested in the Lord’s Supper. Some people were more concerned about eating their own supper than with the Lord’s Supper. Essentially when they as the church body would gather for the Lord’s Supper once a week, they were not waiting for all the members of the community to arrive and instead they would eat the food before their fellow brothers and sisters in Christ arrived and there would be no food for them left. Hence Paul says in verse 34 if they are really hungry, eat at home so they don’t bring judgment upon themselves when they meet together.

So Paul’s response to what is happening among them during the Lord’s Supper is to remind them of what happened and the importance of the Last Supper that Jesus had with the disciples.

23 For I pass on to you what I received from the Lord himself. On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread 24 and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, he took the cup of wine after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people – an agreement confirmed with my blood. Do this in remembrance of me as often as you drink it.” 26 For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again.

27 So anyone who eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord unworthily is guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. 28 That is why you should examine yourself before eating the bread and drinking the cup. 29 For if you eat the bread or drink the cup without honoring the body of Christ, you are eating and drinking God’s judgment upon yourself. 30 That is why many of you are weak and sick and some have even died.

31 But if we would examine ourselves, we would not be judged by God in this way. 32 Yet when we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned along with the world.

33 So, my dear brothers and sisters, when you gather for the Lord’s Supper, wait for each other. 34 If you are really hungry, eat at home so you won’t bring judgment upon yourselves when you meet together. I’ll give you instructions about the other matters after I arrive.
1 Corinthians 11:23-34

Paul reminds them why it is they gather with one another being Jesus Christ as Jesus says, “Do this in remembrance of me.” Throughout Scripture we are often told to remember repeatedly, when we come to the Lord’s Table as we are to do this in remembrance of what Jesus has done for us. There is a reason why Scripture tells us constantly to remember, is because it is easy to forget and be more consumed by present daily tasks in life. Now we are going to depart from 1 Corinthians 11 and spend time in Hebrews and discussing a bit of the old covenant and it will bring us all the way back to 1 Corinthians 11.

Christ is the Perfect Sacrifice

11 So Christ has now become the High Priest over all the good things that have come. He has entered that greater, more perfect Tabernacle in heaven, which was not made by human hands and is not part of this created world. 12 With his own blood – not the blood of goats and calves – he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever.

13 Under the old system, the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer could cleanse people’s bodies from ceremonial impurity. 14 Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God. For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins. 15 That is why he is the one who mediates a new covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant.
Hebrews 9:11-15 NLT

The blood of Christ’s offering was his own blood, not the blood of animals. Christ’s offering was made in the heavenly Tabernacle, not the earthly one; and Christ’s offering rather than being made continually, was made just one time.

In contrast, through the old covenant, animals would be used according to the law such as the ashes of a heifer being used for part of the water purification ceremony. The Israelites had all these laws and very specific instructions of what they were to do in accordance to what God had commanded them. In this time God was meeting the Israelites where they were at in establishing all these commands and in the book of Leviticus there were laws that governed ancient Israel’s priests and animal sacrifices.

With the book of Leviticus we find that to be two male goats would be used as a sin offering in relation to specifically the sins of the people of Israel. So let us turn to the book of Leviticus 16:1-10 to see a glimpse of how the old covenant worked and we will contrast that to the new covenant that we find through Jesus’ sacrificial death.

The Day of Atonement

1 The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of Aaron’s two sons, who died after they entered the Lord’s presence and burned the wrong kind of fire before him. 2 The Lord said to Moses, “Warn your brother, Aaron, not to enter the Most Holy Place behind the inner curtain whenever he chooses; if he does, he will die. For the Ark’s cover—the place of atonement—is there, and I myself am present in the cloud above the atonement cover.
3 “When Aaron enters the sanctuary area, he must follow these instructions fully. He must bring a young bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. 4 He must put on his linen tunic and the linen undergarments worn next to his body. He must tie the linen sash around his waist and put the linen turban on his head. These are sacred garments, so he must bathe himself in water before he puts them on. 5 Aaron must take from the community of Israel two male goats for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering.
6 “Aaron will present his own bull as a sin offering to purify himself and his family, making them right with the Lord. 7 Then he must take the two male goats and present them to the Lord at the entrance of the Tabernacle. 8 He is to cast sacred lots to determine which goat will be reserved as an offering to the Lord and which will carry the sins of the people to the wilderness of Azazel. 9 Aaron will then present as a sin offering the goat chosen by lot for the Lord. 10 The other goat, the scapegoat chosen by lot to be sent away, will be kept alive, standing before the Lord. When it is sent away to Azazel in the wilderness, the people will be purified and made right with the Lord.
Leviticus 16:1-10 NLT

The first goat gets killed as a sin offering for the people and the high priest would take the blood behind the inner curtain (The Most Holy Place).
With the sprinkling of the goats blood inside it would purify the Most Holy Place and for the rest of the Tabernacle as well.
So once the high priest is finished purifying the Most Holy Place and the Tabernacle and the altar, he must present the live goat.
He would then take both of his hands and lay them on the goat’s head and confess over it all the wickedness, rebellion, and sins of the people of Israel. In this way he would transfer the people’s sins to the head of the goat. Then a man who was specially chosen for the task would drive the goat into the wilderness. As the goat goes into the wilderness, it will carry all the people’s sins upon itself into a desolate land.
The man who drove the scapegoat into the wilderness, must wash his clothes and bathe himself in water before returning to camp.

Often the man who would drive the scapegoat out into the wilderness, would tie the scapegoat up to a tree or something before returning to camp to prevent it from coming back to the camp. This was because the scapegoat carried the people’s sins. The last thing you want is the goat that is carrying the people’s sins to come back to camp as it meant the people’s sins had come back to them and their sins would not have been removed so naturally they took a few extra precautions. The Day of Atonement was an important event that would happen the tenth day of the seventh month and it was the most solemn day of the year for Israelite’s.

To think if we still had to do these requirements of the old covenant today it strikes me as quite strange. It makes me that much more thankful that we have a new covenant in Jesus. Jesus Christ became our High Priest and ultimate sacrifice, thereby fulfilling all these requirements that we find with the old covenant.

Now in place of the scapegoat, we have Jesus who took on the role of the scapegoat in becoming a perfect sacrifice covering people’s sins once and for all. In the old covenant when the scapegoat was sent away to the wilderness, the people would be purified and made right with the Lord. But now Jesus as our scapegoat purifies us and makes us right with the Lord for all time. The blood of Jesus brings atonement and obtains eternal redemption for us as believers. Christ, God’s lamb, reconciles us to God. He paid our debt of sin and satisfied God’s judgment against us.

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said
“Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”
John 1:29 NLT

This was what John was referencing when he said “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”

Exhortations to Faithfulness

19 And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus. 20 By his death, Jesus opened a new and life-giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place. 21 And since we have a great High Priest who rules over God’s house, 22 let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water.
Hebrews 10:19-22 NLT

We can boldly enter that Most Holy Place, because of the blood of Jesus. The new covenant established by Jesus’s superior ministry, gives us a superior basis for drawing near to God and for persevering in our lives as followers of him. The earthly Most Holy Place we find with the old covenant inside the Tabernacle was not freely accessible. Now, however, the very presence of God in heaven is open because of the blood of Jesus in his sacrificial death.

Jesus’ death has opened a new and life-giving way for us through the curtain, an allusion to the curtain that separated the first and second rooms of the Tabernacle. We as believers now enter the Most Holy Place of God’s presence through Jesus’ sacrificial death. Jesus now serves and functions as our High Priest and king who rules over God’s house, the people of God. I was once asked by a student during my time in ministry at Campus House, “What is Jesus doing now that he has ascended to heaven?” We find that answer in a few places throughout Hebrews, specifically let’s read Hebrews 7:23-25.

23 There were many priests under the old system, for death prevented them from remaining in office. 24 But because Jesus lives forever, his priesthood lasts forever. 25 Therefore he is able, once and forever, to save those who come to God through him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf.
Hebrews 7:23-25 NLT

Since Jesus lives forever, the salvation he brings also lasts forever. To draw near to an eternal God, we need an eternal priest. Jesus will intercede or appeal to God for us as our High Priest of the new covenant, and his intercession is never-ending.

In bringing us back to 1 Corinthians 11, we come together in remembrance of Jesus’ sacrificial death because he interceded on our behalf on the cross. Jesus for a little while, became flesh and blood and was given a position a little lower than the angels and because he suffered death for us, he is now crowned with glory and honor. It is by God’s grace, Jesus tasted death for everyone. The reason why we come together as the body of Christ is because of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection.

That when we believe and put our faith in Jesus, we are made right with God because he is our High Priest, he is our final scapegoat as he has carried away our sin, the sin of the world. So let us recall and read 1 Corinthians 11:26-29 again in drawing this blog to a close.

26 For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again.

Listen intently to what I am about to say. I want each of us to reflect on the words I am about to write and take them to heart. In taking the Lord’s Supper, we as Christians proclaim the saving significance of the Lord’s death to those around us until he comes again. To take the Lord’s Supper without recognizing its significance or with unconfessed sin in one’s life is to take it unworthily. It is equivalent to sinning against the body and blood of the Lord himself; it treats his sacrificial death as trivial. Before taking the Lord’s Supper, we as Christians should confess our sins and consider what the bread and the cup signify.

So that is why each of us should examine ourselves before we eat the bread and drink the cup. I know there have been times in my life where I have taken the bread and the cup unworthily in my life and walk with Christ. I have to make it a personal point to check and examine myself that when I gather with fellow brothers and sisters in Christ in remembrance, I have to ask myself, “Derrick, do you understand what you are about to do? Why are you taking the bread and the cup right now? What does Jesus’ death mean to you?”

The heart of what I want to get at today in this blog and did four years ago with this sermon is the significance of what is represented in The Table of the Lord. Living our lives in remembrance of what Jesus has done for us. What does it mean to you that when Jesus broke bread into pieces and tells you, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” What does it mean to you that when Jesus took the cup and tells you, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people – an agreement confirmed with my blood. Do this in remembrance of me as often as you drink it.”

We come together to worship and praise Jesus for what he has done for the mysterious plan of salvation that God had planned since the beginning of time. Because of what Jesus has done we worship him and remember what he has done by coming together around the Lord’s Table.

The reason we gather is in remembrance of what Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God has done in his sacrificial death in taking away our sin. And just as Paul discusses in 1 Corinthians 11, we also gather in recognizing each other as brothers and sisters in Christ when we come to take the bread and the cup. We as a community of believers are to be orderly in that essence when we come together in remembrance of what Jesus has done and not cause any division between us. We all come together as a community of believers in being the body of Christ in announcing Jesus’ death until he comes again and a glorious day that will be when we meet face to face.

“Remembrance” – Hillsong

VERSE 1:
I take the bread of life
Broken for all my sin
Your body crucified
To make me whole again

VERSE 2:
I will recall the cup
Poured out in sacrifice
To trade this sinners' end
For Your new covenant

CHORUS:
Hallelujah
I'll live my life in remembrance
Hallelujah Your promise I won't forget

VERSE 3:
I'll walk salvation's road
With fear and trembling
Your way borne as my own
As Christ is formed in me

CHORUS:
Hallelujah
I'll live my life in remembrance
Hallelujah Your promise I won't forget

POST CHORUS 1:
If ever I should lose my way
If ever I deny Your grace
Remind me of the price You paid
Hallelujah I'll live in remembrance

BRIDGE (repeated):
You've been so so good to me
You've been so so good to me
Oh to think where I would be
If not for You
If not for You

POST CHORUS 2:
As far as heights reach from the depths
As far as east is from the west
So far Your grace has carried me

POST CHORUS 3:
Until I see You face to face
Until at last I've won my race
Remind me Youʼre not finished yet

TAG:
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah I'll live in remembrance