This Do In Remembrance of Me: A Call to Thanksgiving

Reflections on I Cor. 11:23-30

In a couple days we look forward to celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday. The American idea of Thanksgiving finds its origin in that iconic scene of Pilgrims and Indians seated around a table in 1621 Plymouth Plantation, giving thanks to God for the provisions that He had provided them in the New World. Thanksgiving is a holiday that expresses our thankfulness, gratitude, and appreciation to God for those things that He has graciously given us. Unfortunately, in an age of media controlled relevance, the holiday season quickly moves from Halloween to Christmas, giving Thanksgiving a quick wink as November flies by. 

In Jewish society, the celebration of thanksgiving occurs during the feast of Passover. Passover is a holiday that commemorates the exodus of the Hebrew people from Egypt. The name for the feast is derived from a Hebrew word which means to pass over, and comes from the instruction that God have to Moses in Exodus 12 right before the dispensing of the tenth plague on the firstborn of Egypt. Each year, Passover is celebrated right after sundown on the 14th day of Nisan, which is the first month of the Jewish calendar. It is observed for seven consecutive days in Israel and eight days outside of the Holy Land. 

Simply, the Passover was established to be a reminder to the children of Israel of their deliverance from Egyptian bondage. God commanded His people to remember those events. So now, the Lord's Supper is established to be a reminder to us as the Church of our deliverance from our sinful bondage. 

We must assume that all our Lord accomplished at this meal was the culmination of a thoroughly detailed plan for His church. Nothing can be more certain than the deliberate choice of Jesus to use the Passover Meal for the institution of the sacraments of His body and blood. The Passover was a thanksgiving celebration for God's provisions for the children of Israel. The institution of the Lord's Supper is the way in which the church celebrates God's provision for itself. The Lord's Supper, in its fundamental implication, is just what the Passover Meal was: the sacrifice of the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ.  The symbols may have changed, but the Substance remained the same.

The central feature of both is consuming a symbol of Jesus Christ; the lamb for Passover and the unleavened bread for the Lord's Supper. The nature of the lamb certainly cannot be doubted by any reader of the New Testament. The lamb that was sacrifice and laid on the table at this feast was the representative of the Lamb of God that had been slain before the foundation of the world. The elements of which we partake at the Lord's Supper are the representation of His body and blood: His body broken that His redemptive blood may be spilled out for us. What is done in the two feasts is therefore precisely the same things: Jesus Christ is symbolically sacrificed for sin.

This close similarity between the two feasts again is certainly no accident. We must understand that our Lord, in instituting the Supper, meant to make it a replica of the Passover. So I believe that we can say the Lord's Supper is the Christian's Passover Meal. It takes, and was intended to take in the Christian Church, the place which the Passover occupied in the early Jewish Church. It is the Christian substitute for the Passover.

As we enter into this season of Thanksgiving, I want us to consider the answers to two fundamental questions:  

                         How are we to celebrate the Lord's Supper?

                         Why are we to celebrate the Lord's Supper? 

How are we to celebrate the Lord's Supper?

1. We observe the Lord's Supper with a heart of submission v.27,29

    In these verses Paul warns the Corinthian believers from partaking of the Lord's Supper in an "unworthy manner." We live in a culture that is consumed with social status. The media would proclaim that a person's worth is based on their fiscal value. We know, as believers, our worth is based in our standing with Jesus Christ. We, by nature, are worth-less. We by nature have no hope, no value; it is the righteousness of Christ that gives us value. 

    I believe unworthiness of the Lord's Table characterized two groups: the unregenerate and the unwilling. Unbelievers have no desire for the blood of Christ, for there is no need of it (II Cor 2:14).There are those who would never boast a relationship with Christ, yet they would have no problem following rituals of the church in order to remain in good standing with the status quo.

    Those that refuse to submit to the lordship of Jesus Christ in their lives are also considered unworthy of the Lord's Table. Their position in Christ may be secure but their maturity as a child of God is hindered by known sin that remains. If we have known sin in our lives or if we have known discord with another brother (or sister), we too are unworthy of the body and blood of Christ. Remember our Lord's words in Matthew 6: For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. but if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

2. We partake of the Lord's Supper with a purpose of self-examination v. 28

    If you have a physical problem with your body, the obvious thing to do is to consult a physician. He is able to examine your condition and give you the proper solutions to your physical ailment. We go to the expert to find the expert advice. 

    We as believers consult the expertise of the Word in order to find the solutions to our spiritual infection. In order for us to be found worthy to celebrate the Lord's Supper, we are to examine our spiritual condition; and not only examine, but remedy that condition. Paul commands these same believers later in II Cor 13:5, Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? Unless indeed you are disqualified. 

    We are to have the transparency of King David in Psalm 139: Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. That we view our sin as God does and turn away from it fueled with a passion to be an acceptable, living sacrifice for Him.

Why are we to celebrate the Lord's Supper?

1. It is a memorial of what Christ has done for us v. 24,25

    Do this in remembrance of Me. You will notice that just as God commanded the Israelites to keep teh Passover, so Jesus commands His disciples and His church to contiue to observe this memorial. It is a time for us to remember the sacrifice of our Lord for us. A sacrifice that cost us nothing; yet afforded us everything. 

2. It is a unification with what Christ has done for us v. 25

   This cup is the new covenant in My blood. A covenant is a promise; an agreement. God's covenant with His people was established by a blood sacrifice. Hebrews 9:22 tells us that without the shedding of blood there is NO remission (payment) of sin. As sacrificial blood established God's promise to Moses in Egypt, so His Son's blood established the new covenant with His church. God's covenant with Israel wasn't just some voluntary agreement between two equals; it was initiated by Jehovah, and He set its terms. Israel voluntarily agreed to obey His conditions. So the new covenant was a Divine work, its nature and conditions stipulated by God and offered to men on the basis of faith. 

   When we partake of the Lord's Supper, we are proclaiming our allegiance to uphold our end of the agreement. To live according to God's Word; to be Christ-like in all that we say and do.  

3. It is a proclamation of our faith Christ has done for us v. 26

     ...you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes. Paul says that as we continue to administer the Lord's Supper we proclaim the Lord's death till He comes. We are unified with Christ through His sufferings. He is the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53 that has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows. Our lives proclaim His sacrifice by living a life of reasonable worship of Him (Rom 12:1-2). 

I think too often, the Lord's Supper is nothing more than a religious ritual that is empty and vague. May we approach this ordinance of Christ with reverence and thankfulness for what Jesus Christ has done for us. 

Soli Deo Gloria, 

RV 

   

November 22nd

Good Morning from St. Louis:

I want to spend a few moments introducing you to someone who has had a profound and lasting effect on my life. Apart from Jesus Christ, he is the most important man I have ever come to know. He is a man who has spent his life mindful of his responsibility to his God and it shows in everything that he does. He's not perfect; and he'd be the first one to tell you. But I dare say, that if I were to boast to be half the man he is, that would be sufficient for me.
He has been my counselor my entire life. He is a man who has taught me to keep short accounts of my life; to never let anything get in the way of my relationship with my God. He's taught me to learn from his mistakes: That the consequences of running from God will never go away. He taught me to always provide for our family even if it meant that I went without. He has taught me patience through tough circumstances; perserverence when it seemed impossible for one man to build an entire home by himself. He's taught me kindness toward others even when I don't think they deserve it; he taught me that family comes first. He taught me to respect women; to love my wife as Christ loves His bride. He has taught me to love music and to use the gifts that God has given me. He has been a constant encouragement and has spent his entire life sacrificing for my best interest.

He is great with kids: You kind of have to be when you were raised as one of twelve siblings. His children are far from perfect, and many times let him down. Yet, his love for them has never waivered or failed. He took his boys fishing; taught them how to shoot a gun;  how to shoot a basketball; how to throw a ball. He taught them how to grow a garden...and then how to weed it :) He taught his kids to take care of the things that God has given them.

Simply, he has been my example of Christ. I love him every day for it. He is turning 60 today, and I could'nt be there to say this to him in person. Your children love you more than we can express. Your boys especially thank you for being our example and taking the time to shepherd us to follow God's will.

Happy Birthday, Dad

The Power of the Cross

One of the means by which you and I are priviledged to worship God is through music. Since I was a child I have loved music. I was raised to love and enjoy music. I believe that music is vitally important in our attempt to ascribe worth to God. It is a means by which we, like King David, are able to give an opinion of His excellent character.

Music is not only important in our corporate worship of God, but also in our private times of adoration. I tend to believe there is a fine line between cultural relevance and compromise when it comes to Christian music. I truly don't want to get into that in this blog. We have "experts" who will explain for us the sensuality of the 2/4 beat and the subsequent compromise of using instruments other than a piano- I will leave it to them to delineate these things. With that being said, I have found that there are many God-honoring, Christ-centered, Gospel-derived songs that have been written in the last 10 years. Just because they happen to be "contemporary" doesn't immediately mean "compromise." Understand, Martin Luther's, A Mighty Fortress Is Our God was contemporary in his day.

What I would like to do is introduce to some of you (others will know many of these already) some music that has aided my worship of Jesus Christ. Not just psalms and hymns, but spiritual songs that focus solely on what Christ has done for us and how we are to respond to those acts of love. And let's be honest, when's the last time you went to a church where the Psalms were sung?

Just recently I was introduced to Keith and Kristyn Getty. The Gettys are modern day hymn writers from Ireland whose goal and aim is to write and produce music expressly for the church. Along with Bob Kauflin, Stuart Townend, and others, the Gettys provide doctrinally rich text communicated with relevant music.

This song is called, The Power of the Cross. It is one of the most moving songs I have ever heard; not just because it has a beautiful melody, but because of the truth of what Christ has done for me. Lyrics are provided below. Take a moment to reflect on the finished work of our Lord.





Oh, to see the dawn
Of the darkest day:
Christ on the road to Calvary.
Tried by sinful men,
Torn and beaten, then
Nailed to a cross of wood.

CHORUS:
This, the pow'r of the cross:
Christ became sin for us;
Took the blame, bore the wrath—
We stand forgiven at the cross.

Oh, to see the pain
Written on Your face,
Bearing the awesome weight of sin.
Ev'ry bitter thought,
Ev'ry evil deed
Crowning Your bloodstained brow.

CHORUS

Now the daylight flees;
Now the ground beneath
Quakes as its Maker bows His head.
Curtain torn in two,
Dead are raised to life;
"Finished!" the vict'ry cry.

CHORUS

Oh, to see my name
Written in the wounds,
For through Your suffering I am free.
Death is crushed to death;
Life is mine to live,
Won through Your selfless love.

FINAL CHORUS:
This, the pow'r of the cross:
Son of God—slain for us.
What a love! What a cost!
We stand forgiven at the cross.

Opening thoughts

Let's be honest: The last thing our society needs is someone else who thinks they know a lot and attempts to pontificate based on that false premise. Let me put your mind at ease; this is not my intent with this blog.

My choice to begin this blog stems from a desire I have had all my life to write. I am by no means a linguist or grammar czar; nor do I claim the corner of the market with my wisdom. I simply enjoy expressing myself in written form.

This blog will be a cacophony of my opinions, views, convictions, and some useless information- but isn't that what most blogs consist of anyway? Primarily, this blog will serve as a testimony of that which God is doing in my life as I progress in my relationship with His Son. As I grow older, now 32, I've begun to understand that much of my sonship has been more about cultivation of rituals than that of a relationship. I believe this is true with the predominance of evangelical churches, but especially in fundamentalism. Now, I AM a fundamentalist (or extremist if your labels come from Whoopi Goldberg or Joy Behar); but not to the extent where the truths of Scripture are dilluted by the "fundamentals" of religous fundamentalism. I am of the persuasion that we don't need to reinvent fundamentalism but to redefine it. It has become a movement of championing causes and viewpoints of men instead of championing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. As I tell the group of believers with whom I pastor, "We as believers need to be less religious and more relational- with our God and with one another."

Anyway, that was my rant for today. I am sure there will be more of those to come, but I certainly want to share the lighter side of things with you as well. I will talk "shop" occasionally, but for the most part I want to just share with you what God is doing in my life and the life of my family.

Sola Gratia,

RV