LANGUAGE:
Do This In Remembrance Of Me!
(1 Corinthians 11; Luke 22)
In the Gospel of John, chap 1, v12 we read, as many as receive Jesus, to them He ‘gives’ the right to become ‘part of the family of God.’ Today we gather as the ‘family of God’ at the table of our Lord.
In Luke 22, v15(GW) Jesus gathered His disciples around Him and said “I’ve had a deep desire to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. "I have desired" carries the idea "to set one's heart upon", or "to long for." [i] That is, Jesus had a burning desire to connect with His disciples on a climatic level. The point is, something of great significant is about to take place that He didn’t want them to miss. One commentator writes: The disciples as a community were about to share a meal that was tied to history past, reflecting on what God had done that illustrated the warp-and-woof of God’s agenda of redemption.
And according to 1 Corinthians 10:16, part of the reason this meal was to be observed was designed to connect them and us afresh with Him, reaffirming their connection and our connection to Him and to one another.[ii]
As we participate at the Lord’s Table we are acknowledging the truth of Romans 6:4: that we have been buried with ‘Christ Jesus’ through baptism into His death, and raised from the death with Him to the glory of the Father, so that we too might walk in the newness of life.[iii]
Let’s bow before our God, asking Him to open our hearts and minds, Heavenly Father, Sovereign Lord, Holy Spirit, speak to us now as we come to You to receive the food of your Holy Word and the grace of our Lord’s Table. Take Your truth, and plant it deep in us that we might walk in love just as Christ also loved us and gave Himself up for us as an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma, amen.[iv]
Years ago, when visiting my Dad & Mom in Ohio, as we entered their home there would be a wall with a dozen or more pictures of past family members. These pictures reminded me, not only of past family members, but also how they, in one way or another, shaped my worldview. In some fashion they gripped my heart, renewing my family allegiances. They would bring back to mind, not only relationships, but also significant events and activities that have played a role in my life. [v]
At The Last Supper Jesus wanted to burn an important memory into the hearts of His disciples that they would never ever forget. That’s why Jesus said at the end of the Passover meal, "do this in remembrance of me." In a manner of speaking, Jesus was saying to His disciples: I don’t want you to ever forget who I am, what I ‘ve taught you, and what I’ve done for you. And it was Jesus’ intent for the disciples to pass the meal and the memories to us.
As we participate at the Lord’s Table, we need to understand it’s connection to the Passover instituted in Exodus 11-12. There we read that God was about to unleash horrific judgement on the land of Egypt because of their brutality to His people and Pharaoh’s refusal to let the people go as requested. So we read in Exodus 11:4–5 (NASB95) 4 Moses said, “Thus says the LORD, ‘About midnight I am going out into the midst of Egypt, 5 and all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of the Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the slave girl who is behind the millstones; all the firstborn of the cattle as well.
To be released from God’s coming judgment, the people of Israel were instructed to take a year-old unblemished lamb, kill it, catch the blood in a bowl, and paint the doorframe of their homes, sides and top with the blood of the lamb. At the stroke of midnight, the Angel of Death was going to sweep across the land of Egypt and strike the firstborn of every family, and every animal belonging to that family, whose door frame had no blood splashed on it. If he saw the blood on the door frame, he would pass-over that home. No one would die.[vi] The Passover lamb served as the substitute for the firstborn. Without the death of the lamb and the spreading of its blood, everyone would suffer the loss of their first-born.[vii]
Further, God told Israel, Exodus 12:25–27 (GW) 25 When you enter the land that the Lord will give you as he promised, observe this ceremony. 26 When your children ask you what this ceremony means to you, 27 you must answer, ‘It’s the Passover sacrifice in the Lord’s honor. The Lord passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when he killed the Egyptians.’ ”
Now, how does this all apply to us?
The reason Jesus came to Jerusalem in Mark 13 wasn’t just to celebrate the Passover meal, but to become our Passover. In 1 Corinthians 5:7 (NASB95) we are told Christ ‘is’ our Passover ‘who’ has been sacrificed. [viii]. The point for us is, the Lord’s Table is our Passover celebration, designed to draw us into the covenant made by God in Jesus’ self-giving sacrifice for us. Reminding us of His saving work, that His blood will protect us from the coming judgment of God.
This moment is filled with high drama. In some fashion, as we take the bread—symbolizing His battered body and drink the cup, symbolizing His spilled blood we are meant to remember that in real time real judgment for sin is coming. Hebrews 9:26–28 (GW) 26 . . . But now he has appeared once to remove sin by his sacrifice. 27 Just as men are appointed to die once, and after that to face judgment 28so also Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many, and after that he will appear a second time. This time he will not deal with sin, but he will save those who eagerly wait for him.
The Lord’s Supper is a powerful lesson for deepening and sustaining our lives. With that in mind, I want to share five ways that our participation at the Lord’s Table strengthens our faith.
This is not just a memorial moment. It’s a declaration of His death in real time. According to 1 Corinthians 11:26 (ESV) as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. It’s a visible sermon of the Gospel which has been made known to all the nations, leading to obedience of faith to the only wise God though Jesus Christ (Romans 16:26b-27).[viii]
The Lord’s Supper is a proclamation of our hope that His death on the cross gives us life. In this moment we are proclaiming that Jesus conquered sin and death, and rose from the grave to give everlasting life to all who believe in Him. 1 Corinthians 15:22 (ESV) For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. Mark this down: At the cross Jesus took the righteous wrath of God against sin, and became the substitute for all who would believe in him.[ix] And according to Hebrews 8:6 He rose from the dead as the Mediator of a better Covenant.[x] And so theologian Charges Hodge writes, ‘In this ordinance Christ is set forth as a sacrifice which at once makes amends for sin and ratifies the covenant of grace.’ To participate at the Lord’s Table is a dramatic presentation of the Gospel to one another and to the world.
Jesus told His disciples in Luke 22:19 that we are to do this in remembrance of Him. [xi] It is a call to continual obedience and devotion. And so the
Psalm 116:12–14 (NASB95) 12 What shall I render to the LORD For all His benefits toward me? 13 I shall lift up the cup of salvation And call upon the name of the LORD. 14 I shall pay my vows to the LORD, Oh may it be in the presence of all His people. For the follower of Christ, this is a new-covenant renewal of fellowship and perseverance in our embracement of the gospel. It is designed to help us to “hold firmly to the word” (1 Corinthians 15:2) and to “continue in the faith, not shifting from the hope of the gospel, but being stable and steadfast,” (Colossians 1:23).
That’s what we are told in 1 Corinthians 11:27, not to participate in an unworthy manner. That is, we dare not downplay its true worth. To partake in an unworthy manner is to be complacent, light-hearted, flippant, as in giving no thought to that which the elements signify as we participate at His table. In the context of 1 Corinthians, the Corinthians believers were making a mockery of the Table of our Lord with their partying attitudes.
To partake in an "unworthy manner" involves at least three attitudes:
Jesus said in John 14:23, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him." To examine ourselves, is to ask ourselves, "What kind of home am I providing for the Sovereign God and His glorified Son?"
The point that Paul is making is that some of the Corinthian believers were not handling the meal in an worthy manner. Because of that, Paul tells us that many of ‘them were’ weak and ill, and some had even died because they were coming to the table in an unworthy manner. So it is really important we examine our faith—is it real? Is it fuzzy? Do we even have faith?.[xvi]
The Lord’s Supper is meant to draw us back to the cutting of God’s covenant at Calvary in Christ’s self-giving sacrifice for us. On the night before Jesus went to the cross, He told His disciples that with His death, He would institute the New Covenant (Luke 22:20). God’s new covenant is spelled out for us in Jeremiah 31:33-34. There are three parts to the New Covenant:
Taking the bread and the cup represents for us the reality of our salvation. To remember God's work in Christ is to experience the reality of our covenantal fellowship with God. When we take the bread and the cup we actively renew our commitment with God. It is a moment of rededication to live worthy of the gospel, to take up our cross and follow Jesus.[xix]
When we take the bread and the cup, it is a testament of the peace that exists between God and us. It’s an assurance of God’s redemptive work in us. As we eat and drink from the cup we are actively participating in God’s Salvation.
Romans 6:4–9 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. 5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6 For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with,[a] that we should no longer be slaves to sin— 7 because anyone who has died has been set free from sin. 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9 For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him.
Observing the Lord's Supper is meant to be personal. John 3:14–15 (NASB95) 14 “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; 15 so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life. We participate with reverence, humility, and sincerity, while understanding and proclaiming Christ's great act of love. Paul said that our observance of the Lord's Supper is to help us to remember God’s great gift of redemption.
In the book The Tale of the Tardy Oxcart by Charles Swindoll, there is a short story of an eight-year-old Kenyan girl by the name of Monica. One day she fell into a pit and broke her leg. Mama Njeri, an older woman, seeing what happened, climbed into the pit to help Monica climb out. Unknown to her a black mamba lay in the bottom. To be bitten by a black mamba is considered 'a kiss of death'. The black mamba was indeed disturbed, and bit both Mama Njeri and Monica.
They were both rescued from the pit. Monica was taken to Kejave Medical Center, while Mama Njeri went home. She fell asleep, and never woke up.
Monica learned of her death and wonder why she lived and Mama Njeri did not. A missionary nurse explained to Monica that though they had both been bitten by the black mamba, Mama Njeri had been bitten first, taking all of the black mamba's poison. When the snake bit Monica, it had no poison left. The nurse explained to Monica that Jesus had similarly taken the poison of our sin and God’s coming judgment so that we can live. Monica understood and asked Jesus to forgive her of her sins and give her eternal life.[xx]
TRANSITION
The Table of our Lord is designed to refresh us, and remind us that without His blood over us, our eternal future is a Lake of Fire that never goes out. And so we come to the Table of our Lord to be reminded of the grace of our God. In this moment we celebrate His victory over the powers of darkness, we proclaim His redemptive work in our lives, we declare our dependence upon Him and one another, we examine ourselves that we might grow as His disciples, and we receive every blessing that His sacrifice for us has provided.
So lets come to the Lord’s Table in response to God’s Word, realigning our lives to His calling as we refresh our memory in accords with Romans 6, that we have a share in all that He did, so that what is true of Him is true of us: He died, and we died in Him; He rose and we arose with Him, and are now alive to God in Christ Jesus (Romans 6:11). In John 11:25–26 (NASB95) 25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”
Listen again as I read for us 1 Corinthians 11:23–24 (NASB95) 23For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”
Prayer
Lord Jesus, as we bow before You in humility, we ask that You examine our hearts today. Show us anything that is not pleasing to You. Reveal secret pride, unconfessed sin, rebellion or unforgiveness that may be hindering our relationship with You. We know that we are Your beloved children, having received You into our hearts and accepted Your death as penalty for our sinfulness. The price You paid covered us for all time, and our desire is to live for You.
As we take the bread representing Your life that was broken for us, we remember and celebrate Your faithfulness to us and to all who genuinely know You. We can't begin to fathom the agonizing suffering of Your crucifixion. Yet You took that pain for us. You died for us!
Thank You for Your extravagant love and unmerited favor. Thank You that Your death gave us life—abundant life now, and eternal life forever. As You instructed Your disciples, we, too, receive this bread in remembrance of You. Amen
Passing of the bread
After we take the bread, turn to the person next to you and say to them--The body of Christ, broken for you, then the person next to you will repeat . . . the body of Christ broken for you . . . then we eat the bread together
Ricardo: Scripture & Prayer
1 Corinthians 11:25-26 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. (ESV)
Pray
After we take the cup, turn to the person next to you and say to them—This is the blood of Christ poured out for you then the person next to you will repeat . . . This is the blood of Christ poured out for you. . . then we will drink the cup together
[i] John Nolland,
Luke 18:35–24:53, vol. 35C, Word Biblical Commentary (Dallas: Word, Incorporated, 1993), 1049. cognate dative ἑπιθυμίᾳ (lit. “with desire”) as an intensifier.
[ii] Darrell L. Bock, Luke, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996), 553.
[iii] Romans 6:5–9 (NASB95)5 For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; 7 for he who has died is freed from sin. 8 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him.
[iv] Ephesians 5:1–2 (NASB95) 1 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; 2 and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.
[v] Steven Cole, Lesson 99: Come to the Table (Luke 22:7-23), https://bible.org/seriespage/lesson-99-come-table-luke-227-23
[vi] Exodus 12:23–24 (NASB95)23 “For the LORD will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when He sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the LORD will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to come in to your houses to smite you. 24 “And you shall observe this event as an ordinance for you and your children forever.
[vii] https://biblehub.com/commentaries/exodus/12-38.htm. According to Exodus 12:38 a mixed multitude left Egypt with the Jews,.... Some of these were Egyptians, and some of other nations that had resided in Egypt, and who, on various accounts, might choose to go along with the children of Israel; some through intermarriages with them, being loath to part with their relations, Pehaps some of the non-Jewish community followed suite when it came to the killing of the lamb and eating the Passover meal. After all, the instructions were not entirely secret, and Moses was greatly esteemed in the land of Egypt, both in sight of Pharaoh’s servants and in the sight of the people in general (Exodus 11:3)
[viii]John 1:29 (NASB95) 29 The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! John 1:36 (NASB95) 36 and he looked at Jesus as He walked, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” 1 Peter 1:18–19 (NASB95) 18 knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, 19 but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ. Isaiah 53:7 (NASB95) 7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth; Like a lamb that is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, So He did not open His mouth. Just as the blood of the lamb on the doorposts at the Exodus protected the people from death … so the blood of Jesus covers our sins, protecting us from the eternal wrath of God to come.
[viii] Romans 16:25–27 (NASB95) 25 Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which has been kept secret for long ages past, 26 but now is manifested, and by the Scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God, has been made known to all the nations, leading to obedience of faith; 27 to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, be the glory forever. Amen.
[ix] Genesis 2:16–17 (NASB95) 16 The LORD God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; 17 but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.” Romans 3:23 (NASB95) 2for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, Romans 6:23 (NASB95) For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
[x] Hebrews 8:6 (NASB95) 6 But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, by as much as He is also the mediator of a better covenant, which has been enacted on better promises.
[xi] 1 Corinthians 11:24–25 (NASB95) 24 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.” 25 In the same way He took the cup also after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.”
[xii] Cf., 1 Corinthians 11:20–22 (NASB95) 20 Therefore when you meet together, it is not to eat the Lord’s Supper, 21 for in your eating each one takes his own supper first; and one is hungry and another is drunk. 22 What! Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you? In this I will not praise you. James 2:1–6 (NASB95)1 My brethren, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism. 2 For if a man comes into your assembly with a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in dirty clothes, 3 and you pay special attention to the one who is wearing the fine clothes, and say, “You sit here in a good place,” and you say to the poor man, “You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool,” 4 have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives? 5 Listen, my beloved brethren: did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress you and personally drag you into court?
[xiii] 1 Corinthians 10:19–21 (NASB95) 19 What do I mean then? That a thing sacrificed to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything? 20 No, but I say that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to God; and I do not want you to become sharers in demons. 21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons.
[xiv] Cf., What Is Secularism? https://www.gotquestions.org/what-is-secularism.html. 1 John 2:15–17 (NASB95)15 Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. 17 The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.
[xv] 1 Corinthians 11:23–26 (NASB95) 23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24 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.” 25 In the same way He took the cup also after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.
[xvi] What Does ‘Examine Yourselves’ Mean? https://www.cgg.org/index.cfm/library/article/id/1136/what-does-examine-yourselves-mean.htm
[xvii]Cf., John Mark Hicks, The Lord’s Table: A Covenant Meal, https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/71931442.pdf
[xviii] John 17:3 (NASB95) “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.
[xix] Cf., Philippians 1:27 (NASB95) Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I will hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel; Matthew 16:24–26 (NASB95) 24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. 25 “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. 26 “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
[xx] Charles Swindoll, The Tale of the Tardy OxCart, (Nashville, TN; Thomas Nelson, 1998), p541