03-03-2024 – The LORD’S Supper

Bible Text: 1 Corinthians 11:23-29 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Above is the link to YouTube.
(audio recording will be provided Sunday afternoon)

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March 3, 2024
“The LORD’S Supper”
1 Corinthians 11:23-29
    

 

The Feast of Unleavened Bread and Passover has been celebrated by Israelites since about 1500 B.C., when God rescued them out of Egypt, after 400 years of captivity.  Passover is named for the event when God’s Death Angel Passed Over Egypt, after God commanded Israel to smear the blood of a yearling lamb on the door frames of their houses; this would serve as protection from God’s judgement, for in every house that did not apply the covering of blood, the firstborn males, both human and animal, died.  This led Pharaoh to release the Hebrews from their captivity as slaves.

The Bible tells us (cf. Exodus 1:11; 5:10-21) that the Hebrews were slaves in Egypt, and under Pharaoh they built the cities of Pithom and Raamses, using bricks of clay mixed with straw, bricks of clay mixed with stubble, and then bricks made of clay alone.

In 1883, Henri Édouard Naville, on behalf of London’s Egypt Exploration Society, excavated the ruins of Pithom, and what he found at that sight was three types of bricks, just like the Bible said: clay mixed with straw, clay mixed with stubble, and clay alone

Throughout Israel’s history (until 70 AD), Passover was celebrated much like the first Passover, in order to remember God’s rescuing them from slavery.  The Jewish Passover celebrated the physical deliverance of Israel from Pharaoh, after which God made a covenant with Israel, under the Law of God, given to Moses.

The Lord’s Supper, celebrated by the Church of God, declares the deliverance of all true Christians from the penalty of sin, by the Grace of God, under a covenant made by God through the shed blood and sacrificial death of God’s own Son.

Jesus transformed the Passover meal into the Lord’s Supper, fulfilling the Law of God, abolishing the daily sacrifices at the Temple.  The Lord’s Supper celebrates the forgiveness for sin and eternal life with God through Jesus Christ’s sacrificial death and sovereign resurrection from the tomb.

The Lord’s Supper [i.e., Lord’s Table, Holy Communion] is a special occasion for every true Christian, individually, and a sacred time for the Church of God corporately, to remember all that the Lord has done for us, while looking toward the future, when we will be with the Lord forever.

Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 14:22-25; and Luke 22:14-20 give an account of the Passover meal when the Lord presented the New Covenant through His own blood, and the offering of His own body which would be hung on a cross the very next day, in order to make the full, acceptable, and eternal payment for all sins, for all people, for all time.
 
Read 1Corinthians 11:23-26…  The bread originally eaten during the first Passover meal was unleavened, basically it was flatbread which baked very quickly.

The type of bread we use to symbolize the body of Christ doesn’t really matter, as it is only a symbol, a reminder that God the Son had a body and that He was put to death on a cross, as payment for all humanity’s sins.

No wonder Jesus says (1Corinthians 11:24), “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”

The cup Jesus used at the Last Passover/First Lord’s Supper, was filled with diluted wine; this was representative of the Passover Lamb’s blood that was originally smeared on the doorposts of each house in Egypt where a Hebrew resided; it now represents the sacrificial blood of the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ.

The new covenant (through Christ) is under Grace, for God’s Son fulfilled the eternal payment for the condemnation of sin for every person who repents and believes in Him for salvation, for He alone is (John 1:29), “The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”

No wonder Jesus says (1Corinthians 11:25), “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of Me.”

God’s Word declares that apart from the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness for sins; and only through the shed blood of God’s Son could the eternal payment for all sin be made; the punishment we deserve was placed upon Jesus, through Whom God’s eternal forgiveness is granted to everyone who repents of their sin and believes in God’s Son for salvation.

Hebrews 8:10, “Behold, days are coming, says the Lord, when I will effect a new covenant.”

Hebrews 9:15, “He [Christ] is the mediator of a new covenant, so that, since a death has taken place for the redemption of the transgressions that were committed under the first covenant, those who have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.” 9:27-28, “And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment, so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him.”

Hebrews 10:4-7, “It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says, ‘Sacrifice and offering You have not desired, but a body You have prepared for Me; in whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You have taken no pleasure.’ Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come (In the scroll of the book it is written of Me) to do Your will, O God.’” 9-10, “He takes away the first in order to establish the second. By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”

14-18, “For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified. And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us; for after saying, ‘This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws upon their heart, and on their mind I will write them,’ He then says, ‘And their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.’ Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin.”

The old covenant (before Christ) was under the Law, sacrifices and offerings for sin were given, but those sins (before Christ) were left unpunished, i.e., the blood of bulls and goats [sheep, pigeons, doves] cannot take away sins, why? Because only human blood, from a sinless human, Jesus [God’s Salvation], Immanuel [God in the flesh], can satisfy God’s sovereign and eternal payment for sin.

What was celebrated once a year, as Passover, by all orthodox Jews until AD 70, with unleavened bread and herbs and a roasted yearling lamb, is now celebrated by most Jewish families, without any lamb.

The Lord’s Supper was first celebrated by Jesus and the 11, before Pentecost (AD 32-33), and since Pentecost, Christians have celebrated it, and will continue to do so until Christ returns to gather all those who belong to Him (John 14:2-3), “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.”

No wonder Paul instructs us (1Corinthians 11:26), “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.”

   The Lord’s Supper is a celebration for all believers and followers of Christ, remembering that we have been freed from the penalty of sin forever, by God’s grace, through the sacrifice of God’s One and Only Son, Jesus Christ: crucified, resurrected, and coming again.

Romans 3:10-12, “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.”

Romans 3:23-24, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus.”

Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

Romans 6:23, “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” [i.e., our payment for sin, what we deserve, is the death penalty, but God (in His mercy) provides eternal life to all who believe in Him].
 
Romans 10:9-10, “If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.  For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.”

We are forgiven all our sins (past-present-future), and we are granted eternal life, by believing in God’s Son’s once for all sacrifice for all sin, for all people, for all time.  How should we respond to this?

Romans 12:1-2, “I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

The Bible declares that God changes people.  You can come to God “Just as you are,” but you will not remain that way if you have truly been born of God; for when you repent of your sins and trust Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, you are a new creation, a child of God, and you now belong to God.

2Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”

Ephesians 2:10, “For we are [God’s] workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”

God’s greatest demonstration of LOVE to us is Jesus Christ.

John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”

Man’s greatest demonstration of love for God is to obey God’s Word and to tell others about God’s Son (John 14:21), “He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him.”

1John 1:1-4, “What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life— and the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us— what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ. These things we write, so that our joy may be made complete.”
 
1Corinthians 15:1-5, “Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to [Peter], then to the twelve.”

Read 1Corinthians 11:27-29…  Paul warns us, that taking Communion in an unworthy manner makes us “guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord.”  What does that mean?  We should soberly and sincerely consider all Jesus did for us on the cross, and also what God requires of us; to examine our relationship with God, God’s Word, and God’s people.

For when we come together to celebrate the Lord’s Supper, we ought to do so reverently, seeking to bring glory and honor and praise to God.

At the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, He commanded His listeners (Mark 1:15-17), to “Repent (of their sins), Believe in Him (for salvation), and Follow His teachings.  Have you repented of your sins?  Do you believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior?  Are you willing to follow Him, by obeying God’s Word?

If you are not sure that you have received forgiveness for your sins and eternal life, through God’s Son, why not settle that issue right now?

Confess to God that you are a sinner. We all are (Romans 3:23) “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” (6:23), “the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Ask God to forgive you. He turns no one away (Acts 2:21), “And it shall be that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Believe in God’s Son for salvation.  He is (John 14:6), the Only Way to God, the Only Revealed Truth from God, and the Only Life with God; for He is the only Savior (Acts 4:12), “There is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”

1John 5:11-13, “And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.”

 

 
Pastor Mike Hale
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