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Baptism & The
Lord’s Supper … The Lord’s Supper
Perhaps the deepest and most meaningful part
of any worship is the Lord’s Supper. It has an intimacy which, I believe,
many of God’s people often wrongly take for granted, - surely it is a time
when the presence of God should be felt among His people. We look back to
the Israelites in the Old Testament and we can see in a very special way how
He came amongst them on the Day of Atonement and in Shekinah glory appeared
in the cloud (Ex. 16:10) and filled the Tabernacle (Ex. 40:34,35).
The subject of the Lord’s Supper is one that
invokes heartfelt doctrinal differences. It is sometimes known by such
titles as the Eucharist and Holy Communion. … I don’t want to spend too long
discussing doctrinal differences, - but I just want to mention some of them
because, on one occasion a member in a previous church very sincerely
informed me that the Roman Catholic Mass was the same as our Lord’s Supper.
The
Catechism of the Catholic Church (1994) explains the ‘Eucharist’ (eujcaristiva,
thankfulness);
it affirms, “The mode of Christ’s presence under the Eucharistic species
[i.e. the bread and the wine]
is unique. It raises the Eucharist above all the sacraments as ‘the
perfection of the spiritual life and the end to which all the sacraments
tend’ (Thomas Aquinas). In the most
blessed sacrament of the Eucharist ‘the body and blood, together with the
soul and divinity, of our Lord Jesus Christ and, therefore, the whole
Christ is truly, really, and substantially contained.’ (Council of
Trent, 1551). ‘This presence is called 'real' - by which is not intended to
exclude the other types of presence as if they could not be 'real' too, but
because it is presence in the fullest sense: that is to say, it is a
substantial presence by which Christ, God and man, makes himself wholly
and entirely present.’ (Pope Paul VI, 1963-78 … successor to John XXIII, and
succeeded by John Paul I.)
This is known as the doctrine of
‘transubstantiation’; again I quote from the Catechism of the Catholic
Church, “The
Council of Trent summarizes the Catholic faith by declaring: "Because Christ
our Redeemer said that it was truly his body that he was offering under the
species of bread, it has always been the conviction of the Church of God,
and this holy Council now declares again, that by the consecration of the
bread and wine there takes place a change of the whole substance of the
bread into the substance of the body of Christ our Lord and of the whole
substance of the wine into the substance of his blood. This change the holy
Catholic Church has fittingly and properly called transubstantiation”.
The term transubstantiation was adopted into
the phraseology of the church in 1215, when it was used by the Fourth
Lateran Council. This doctrine was reconfirmed (1551) by the Council of
Trent and carries with it terrible consequences for those who reject it, "If
any one shall say that, in the most holy sacrament of the Eucharist, there
remains the substance of bread and wine together with the body and blood of
our Lord Jesus Christ; and shall deny that wonderful and singular conversion
of the whole substance of the bread into the body, and of the whole
substance of the wine into the blood, the species of bread and wine alone
remaining, which conversion the Catholic Church most fittingly calls
Transubstantiation, let him be anathema" (Session 13, Canon 2).
The doctrine of transubstantiation, - which
is foundational to Roman Catholicism, - is a blasphemy of blasphemies at the
very heart of this religion because it teaches that every time the Mass is
enacted Christ is crucified all over again.
Martin Luther rejected the doctrine of
‘transubstantiation’, and he replaced it with ‘consubstantiation’. He
taught there was a special and unique physical presence of
Christ, - as well as His spiritual presence, - that accompanied the
Eucharist, but that the bread and wine remained bread and wine, - they
didn’t change as the doctrine of transubstantiation taught. [However,
Christ’s physical presence is in Heaven!]
John Calvin considered it slightly
differently. He considered it as a real means of grace, - a ‘channel’ by
which Christ communicates Himself to us through His presence at the Table.
Calvin believed that while Christ is bodily in Heaven, His presence is
conveyed to us by the Holy Spirit in a particular way at the Table.
The view that we adhere to was developed
during the Reformation period by Ulrich Zwingli, the Swiss Reformer
(1484-1531). He
believed that Christ was present in and through the faith of the
participants, but that this presence was not confined to the bread and the
wine, - they were merely symbolic of His body and His blood.
He did not accept a real presence of Christ in the Supper but,
instead, interpreted the Lord’s Supper as a symbolic commemoration of
the death of Christ.
When you explore the Protestant doctrines, -
including the Thirty Nine Articles, Westminster Confession of Faith, - you
will find the main understanding of the Lord’s Supper shares most in common
with Calvin and Zwingli. (see
http://www.reformedreader.org/ccc/hbd.htm ).
Variations occur when you delve into more
local situations. For example, Plymouth Brethren would not normally admit
believers to the Table who have not appropriate documentation from their
local assembly. In some Strict Baptist congregations only baptised believers
in membership of a fellowship are permitted to the Table.
… It is important to hold a sound Biblical
view with regard to the intimacy of the Lord’s Supper. We must be faithful
to God’s Word and be obedient to His teaching in order to enjoy His presence
as we remember His death on the cross and His resurrection from the tomb.
The Solemnity of
the Lord’s Supper
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It is a solemn occasion. On one
occasion I was in a meeting just outside of Jerusalem, coming from
Bethlehem. At the conclusion of this meeting it was decided to celebrate
the Lord’s Supper. However, such was the frivolity and the lack of proper
respect and solemnity I could not and did not remain in that meeting. |
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The Lord’s Supper remembers the greatest
injustice this world has ever carried out. |
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We
crucified, - under the most horrible conditions, - the perfect, sinless
Son of God. |
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If I was to treat the Lord’s Supper with
frivolity, I would be no better than those who laughed at Him and mocked
Him at the cross. |
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When I come to the Table of the Lord I must
come prepared … for this is the most precious meeting with anyone that I
can ever have. |
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Because I cannot go to Him, He comes to me.
He left the glories of Heaven, He set aside His crown to be
laid in a cradle on His way to the cross to
die for me. … Tell me, what is there to laugh about with that! |
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At a young age, - only in His early
thirties, - He died for me. He died the cruellest death, - not only did
the nails pierce His hands and His feet, but my sins pierced His heart! |
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Everything I am … everything I have …
everything I will be one day centres upon the truths we remember each time
we come to the Table. |
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Yes, Jesus died on the cross … but that
is not it all! Jesus died on the cross to take away my sin, and the
sin of each of His Elect. He had an eternal purpose that we remember
solemnly at the Lord’s Supper. |
The Simplicity of
the Lord’s Supper
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There is no need for fanfares, priests in
fancy regalia, special seats for dignitaries, - the Bible speaks out
against such things, e.g.
I Cor. 11:33 Wherefore, my
brethren, when ye come together to eat, tarry one for another. 34 And if
any man hunger, let him eat at home; that ye come not together unto
condemnation. |
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When Jesus met in the Upper Room with His
disciples, it was the simplest and most ordinary of settings. |
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Indeed, it is not the state of the
surroundings that is important, it is the state of the hearts of those
gathered at the Table as they come to remember Christ and His sacrifice. |
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It is not entertainment or empty
religiousity. It is the meeting of sinners together with their Saviour. |
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We don’t need to have fancy words or
meaningless gestures. Our thoughts need to be focused on our Lord. |
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It is not a time for a hundred words … when
only ten would do. If someone does not know why they are partaking of the
elements, … they ought not to be partaking of them. |
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The simplicity of the occasion calls upon
us to look upward, - because the purpose of meeting at the Lord’s
table is so that our attention is wholly taken up with Christ. |
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At the Last Supper the disciples listened
to His words, - they listened to Him speak; He had their attention. |
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At the Table our minds must be nowhere
else, except in meditation of our great and wonderful Saviour. |
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… We look upward, we also look
inward. Paul told the believers to examine themselves before
they partake of the bread and wine … the danger being that if they partook
of the bread and wine without the appropriate preparation they could be
eating and drinking damnation to their souls (I Cor. 11:28,29). |
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What does that mean? It means that
partaking of the Lord’s Table is such a serious act of worship in the eyes
of God that we must examine our testimony before His holy throne. |
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Am I really saved and walking in fellowship
with the Lord I claim to know and to serve? Am I truly born again of the
Holy Spirit? … I need to examine myself because these are eternal issues,
- I daren’t come to the Table if I’m not prepared. |
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Do I have unconfessed sin … that no-one
else knows about, but God knows? Am I pretending to be something I’m not?
Am I as guilty as the Old Testament worshippers who brought their injured
and defiled animals to the altar for sacrifice? |
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I need to look upward, and I
need to look inward; I also need to look outward.
I need to be aware of the presence of my Lord, but I also need to be aware
of my fellow-believer in the Lord. |
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I can’t have a poor testimony and sit at
the Lord’s Table if I am not right and I haven’t tried to ‘make it up’
with my brother or sister. We are the family of God … with
responsibilities to each other … and Paul says in Eph. 4:3 that we must
make every effort to
keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. |
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What if you have made every effort,
but all your efforts to maintain this unity are ‘thrown back in your face’
and rejected? Well, there is not much you can do regarding the state of
the other person’s heart … but when you come to the Table, your
heart must be prepared. |
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The church in Corinth was ripped in pieces
with factions; Euodias and Syntche in Philippi (Phil. 4:2) weren’t much
better! |
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Guard against coming to the Table and
making it a mockery and a charade. … Look upwards, inwards and outwards.
Pray as the Psalmist prayed,
Ps. 26:2 Examine me, O LORD,
and prove me; try my reins and my heart.
Study Paul’s words again,
I Cor. 11:28 let a man
examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. |
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There is the Solemnity of the Lord’s
Supper, and the Simplicity of the Lord’s Supper, there is also
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The Summons to the
Lord’s Supper
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This is the Lord’s Table to which
every born-again child of God, - who is walking in fellowship with Him and
His people, - is invited. |
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It is not for the unsaved. It is not for
those loosely connected with some pseudo form of Christianity. It is for
those who know and love Jesus Christ in a personal and in a life-changing
way. … It is for those who are the saved of the Lord. |
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Who invites you? It is your Saviour Who
invites you. |
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How often should you come to the Table? …
How much do you love the Lord, - and want to remember in this way He has
appointed, - what He has done to save your soul? Paul said should you
should come ‘often’. |
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You and I, as believers in the Lord Jesus
Christ own a right and a responsibility to come as often as we can …
for as often as ye eat
this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord's death till he come
(I Cor. 11:26). |
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… Just as each child of God ought to be
baptised in the way Jesus commanded, so they should also be regular at the
Lord’s Supper … to keep what He has done for us fresh in our minds. |
Conclusion
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I do not believe we can over-emphasise the
importance of the Lord’s Supper. It is a privilege for the people of God
due to the Sovereign Grace of God. |
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And, we need to bear in mind, “Holy
things,” said Matthew Henry, “are to be used in a holy manner, or else
they are profaned.” |
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May the Lord give us a deeper
understanding of this ordinance that He has blessed His people with. |
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