Mk 14:22-25
22 And as they did eat, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and brake it, and gave to them, and said, Take, eat: this is my body.
23 And he took the cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them: and they all drank of it.
24 And he said unto them, This is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many.
25 Verily I say unto you, I will drink no more of the fruit of the vine, until that day that I drink it new in the kingdom of God. (KJV)
The Lord's Supper! It is a memorial which the Lord Jesus Christ instituted on the eve of his atoning death. The intent of this article is to give you a better understanding of the Lord's Supper. The above passage is the nuts and bolts of the Supper. In Luke 22:15 we see that this Supper was the Passover supper. During the supper Jesus took the bread, which took on a symbolic meaning, repesenting His body and how it will be broken. Then He took the wine, which also took on a symbolic meaning, representing His blood that would be shed for the remission of sins. For without shedding of blood there is no remission of sins (Heb 9:22). If you're not familiar with the propehcies of the Messiah/Christ, you may like to read my article The Prophecies of the Messiah
and Their Fulfillment.
Before the Passover supper on the eve of Christ's death, Jesus had told the people how they would have to eat His flesh and drink His blood. Many found this to be repulsive, to eat and person and to drink their blood. It was against the commandments of God. But, just like the the bread and wine were symbolic at the Passover meal, so was the eating and drinking of Christ's flesh and blood.
Jn 6:47-58
47 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.
48 I am that bread of life.
49 Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead.
50 This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die.
51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.
52 The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat?
53 Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.
54 Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.
55 For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.
56 He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.
57 As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.
58 This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever. (KJV)
In verse 47 Jesus said that whosoever continues to believe in Him will have eternal life. Then Jesus told them what they needed to believe in order for them to have eternal life, His atoning death. Jesus referred to Himself as the bread of life and gave further illustration with the manna God supplied the children of Israel when they were in the wilderness. In verse 51, He said that He will give is His flesh, which He will give for the life of the world. Jesus gave His body to the death of the cross that the people of the world would have life. To eat His flesh (the bread), means to accept the work which Jesus had done on the cross, by receiving Jesus into our lives, or as He said in verse 47 to continually believe and trust in Him.
Jesus also said that if you don't drink His blood that you don't have eternal life in you. As noted earlier, without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins. If you have any questions on sin and why we need to have remission of them check out my Good News article. Verses 54-56 shows us again the need to be partakers of the death of Christ in order to have eternal life and be raised on the last day. We need to abide in Christ, we need to make a constant, moment-by-moment decision to follow Him to be active in living for Him and not ourself (Lk 9:23-26)
Taking a look out of the Gospel's now in search of how we are to remember this supper, we'll go to the book of 1 Corinthains where we see the church there was having troubles over the Lord's Supper.
1 Cor 11:17-34
17 Now in this that I declare unto you I praise you not, that ye come together not for the better, but for the worse.
18 For first of all, when ye come together in the church, I hear that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it.
19 For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you.
20 When ye come together therefore into one place, this is not to eat the Lord's supper.
21 For in eating every one taketh before other his own supper: and one is hungry, and another is drunken.
22 What? have ye not houses to eat and to drink in? or despise ye the church of God, and shame them that have not? What shall I say to you? shall I praise you in this? I praise you not.
23 For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread:
24 And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.
25 After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.
26 For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come.
27 Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.
28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup.
29 For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body.
30 For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.
31 For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.
32 But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.
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. And the rest will I set in order when I come. (KJV)
First off, the Corinthians had a problem when they came together for the Lord's Supper which also included a feast or fellowship meal which was eaten beforehand. At this meal the Corinthians would have a "pot luck" dinner as we'd call it where everyone would bring in something to eat. The problem arose in two ways: 1. there would be division among the rich and poor; and 2. The rich were normally gluttonous during the meal, which caused the poor to go hungry.
This is the problem which Paul is addressing concerning the Lord's Supper. Paul said that they were coming to the Lord's Supper in an unworthy manner because of their actions during the meal inwhich they mocked the Lord's death. According to Paul people got sick and even died because they did not view the Lord's Supper as His flesh and blood, but simply only as food and drink. Therefore Paul told them to examine themselves before they partook of the Lord's Supper to see whether they were showing partiality to the brethren during the meal or observing it as His body and blood.
Now you may be asking yourself about what it means to be unworthy. Let me explain. The word unworthy used here is an “adverb,” and not an “adjective,” and has reference to the manner of observing the ordinance, and not to their personal qualifications or fitness. In other words, taking the Lord's Supper in an unworthy manner doesn't mean to examine yourself for sin, because we are all unworthy, but it speaks of the manner inwhich we view the bread and wine. Do you see it as food and drink or do you see it as the body and blood of the Lord Jesus Christ? If you view it as His body and blood you are not partaking the Lord's Supper in an unworthy manner.
It is common among Christians to add further "examination" before the Lord's Supper which is something a Christian should do daily, not just before they partake of the Lord's Supper. According to Albert Barnes these would include:
- That this examination should include the great question about his personal piety, and about his particular and special fitness for this observance. It should go back into the great inquiry whether he has ever been born again; and it should also have special reference to his immediate and direct preparation for the ordinance. He should not only be able to say in general that he is a Christian, but he should be able to say that he has then a particular preparation for it. He should be in a suitable frame of mind for it. He should have personal evidence that he is a penitent; that he has true faith in the Lord Jesus; that he is depending on him, and is desirous of being saved by him.
- this examination should be minute and particular. It should extend to the words, the thoughts, the feelings, the conduct. We should inquire whether in our family and in our business; whether among Christians, and with the world, we have lived the life of a Christian. We should examine our private thoughts; our habits of secret prayer and of searching the Scriptures. Our examination should be directed to the inquiry whether we are gaining the victory over our easily besetting sins and becoming more and more conformed to the Saviour. It should, in short, extend to all our Christian character; and everything which goes to make up or to mar that character should be the subject of faithful and honest examination.
- it should be done because:
- It is well to pause occasionally in life, and take an account of our standing in the sight of God. People make advances in business and in property only when they often examnine their accounts, and know just how they stand,
- Because the observance of the Lord’s Supper is a solemn act, and there will be fearful results if it is celebrated in an improper manner.
- Because self-examination supposes seriousness and calmness, and prevents precipitation and rashness-states of mind entirely unfavorable to a proper observance of the Lord’s Supper.
- Because by self-examination one may search out and remove those things that are offensive to God, and the sins which so easily beset us may be known and abandoned.
- Because the approach to the table of the Lord is a solemn approach to the Lord himself; is a solemn profession of attachment to him; is an act of consecration to his service in the presence of angels and of people; and this should be done in a calm, deliberate and sincere manner; such a manner as may be the result of a prayerful and honest self-examination.
1 Corinthians 11 also makes clear that they gathered together to eat the Lord's Supper as a meal, not just eating a piece of bread and a glass of wine. If we look at the word "supper" used by Paul here we discover that it indeed refers to a meal and not just some bread and wine.
Stong's Number 1173 - deipnon {dipe'-non}
Meaning: 1) supper, especially a formal meal usually held at the evening, 1a) used of the Messiah's feast, symbolising salvation in the kingdom 2) food taken at evening
In conclusion the Lord's Supper is symbolic of the work Jesus did on the cross to save mankind. By our partaking of the Supper we are remembering the work that He has done for us until He returns. The Lord's Supper is something which should not be taking lightly because in doing so we are counting the blood of the covenant as an unholy thing as we can see a picture of in Heb 10:26-29. I hope that this article has proved to be helpful in your understanding the Lord's Supper and the meanings of it. May the Lord bless you in communion.
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