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1 Corinthians 11:17-34 “Do You Remember?”
1st Corinthians chapter 11 verses 17 to 34 hear the word of the Lord. But in the following instructions, I do not commend you because when you come together It is not for the better, but for the worse.
For in the first place when you come together as a church I hear that there are divisions among you and I believe it in part for there must be Factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized when you come together.
It is not the Lord's Supper that you eat for in eating each one goes ahead with his own meal. One goes hungry another gets drunk. What do you not have houses eat and drink in or do you despise the Church of God and humiliate those who have nothing?
What shall I say to you? Shall I commend you in this? No I will not. For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread. 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 in the same way. Also, we 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. Whoever therefore eats the bread and drinks or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty.
Concerning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine himself then and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself.
That is why many of you are weak and ill and some have died. But if we judged ourselves truly we would not be judged. But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.
So then my brothers when you come together to eat. Wait for one another if anyone is hungry, let him eat at home. So that when you come together, it will not be for judgment. About the other things I will give you directions when I come.
May the Lord has blessings to the reading of his Holy Word. I've taken the Lord's Supper the Anglican way what we call here in the US Episcopal way. I took it once in Singapore where the Archbishop of Canterbury was the presiding Minister.
I've taken it the Presbyterian way, which is the Lutheran way. We have the brethren way, but I've taken it and in all these different kinds of ways. I've taken it kneeling at an altar. Taken it filing forward one by one.
I've taken it where there's a common cup this passed around cup with wine. The only time I wouldn't take it. We were in a Baptist Church or whether they call themselves or not. That's practically what they were and it was done.
So my opinion it was just done so flippantly. Just so casually there's like like, you know, uh, why don't why don't you pray? Come forward sir. Will you pray and like that and with no preparation is though?
It didn't need any that it was just sort of the monthly routine and let's get this out of the way and go on to The next thing and I thought I thought no, it's just not right. It's just too I'm not gonna I'm not gonna take part of this.
I'm just gonna let the bread and the cup pass by. A Lot of evangelicals these days have given so little thought to the Lord's Supper that they don't see that there is any any presence or Any power to it that is nothing really special about it.
It's like a Visual aid really for a teaching tool and they don't see they'll see how important it is. They don't remember how important it is. Do you remember? Well, Thomas Cranmer was the Archbishop of Canterbury the head of the Church of England in the 16th century I've been appointed by Henry VIII.
Cranmer had been mainly responsible for leading the Church of England Which is here in the u .s. Is the Episcopal Church, but mainly responsible for leading it away from Catholicism. But when Henry VIII daughter Queen Mary Bloody Mary sometimes called when she took the throne.
She was determined to return the Church of England back to where it had been to make a Catholic again and to undo all of Cranmer's reforms making and make an example out of Cranmer himself. Not only doing away with him but first as sort of a propaganda ploy.
Force him to renounce the gospel and all the biblical reforms that he had earlier championed. So under great pressure including the burning to death of some of his of Cranmer's friends he was made to sign a statement that that he was retracting all his reforms that he Didn't believe them anymore that he now believed like Queen Mary Go back to Catholicism that all his previous teachings were in error.
Queen Mary and her people thought a document signed by Cranmer himself Would be would be useful and he's you know with his signature on it be useful to show the common people That all that they had heard about the gospel before that salvation was by grace through faith.
Not of works that Christ's righteousness is imputed to us that no rituals of the church including the Lord's Supper Could could win us salvation that Christ is not sacrificed again in the Lord's Supper.
The bread does not literally become as the body of Christ and the wine does not literally become Transformed into his blood. That those truths that Cranmer had been teaching that they were mistaken. All right, Mary Queen Mary wants to undo all of that.
And so he wants and she wants to use Cranmer to prove that all that is wrong. But just in case people said that well in signature on a document that was forged. So just in case they said that that Cranmer would never sign a statement like that.
They thought that would be better to make Cranmer publicly say it. You know to declare it out loud put him get him in the pulpit and make him declare In front of front of witnesses. So in a large church they had Cranmer get up telling him to say the same thing that they had forced him to sign that recantation.
But facing the crowds. You know having signed that thing and he got up in front of the pulpit facing the crowds in this like Cathedral all these people there. He didn't. He said that what he had signed he did not mean that he was forced to do it that he was wrong to do it that he still believed the gospel and Before he could say much more.
They they dragged him out of the pulpit. They took him outside and tied him to a stake in the ground and piled wood around him. And set the wood on fire and as the flames grew higher and higher around him.
He held out his right hand Toward the fire and said the hand that offended shall be the first to suffer. Even as the flames rose he held his hand the hand that had signed that recantation Into the fire letting it be burned up first before he died.
Christians today can scarcely remember all the sacrifices that went into us being able to recover the gospel. We even less remember the fury and the heat and the suffering and the blood that was spilled over of all things the Lord's Supper.
I Think many modern Christians can barely imagine the Lord's Supper. It would be something that important that that infuriating. That provocative worth holding your hand into a fire if it if that hand had sinned.
By writing lies about it. I Looked up the service for the Lord's Supper in the book of common prayer Thomas Cranmer wrote. He mainly wrote the chapter on the Lord's Supper is over 18 pages long. The chapter on the wedding is only six pages long.
Think about what that says about their priorities. The instructions for the Lord's Supper were over three times longer than the instructions on how to carry out a wedding. People killed and people died.
For their convictions about the Lord's Supper. How seriously do we take it? Why were they so focused and sometimes so infuriated about the Lord's Supper because one side said that in it that in the Lord's Supper as we saw in chapter 10 that we had what an effect is an Inoculation against God's judgment that it was as if taking the Lord's Supper kind of like getting your shots.
You know what you got them you don't have to worry about facing the bad consequences of your sin just as if you you get immunized against measles you can Be around people with measles all all the time and not get the disease.
So they thought if they could take the Lord's Supper. You know you take it every maybe every week or however you Boston go it's like getting your booster shots. They could be around sin all day long and not worry about the The consequences the coming down with a bad case of being judged.
And condemned for their sins. People in this area. I think Often think the same about their baptism. Or maybe about how they they walk down the aisle. Once once when they were a small kid, they were you know, six years old and they came forward.
At an invitation set a prayer about this invitation system that that guarantees you salvation or maybe they should call it immunization. Against God's judgment if you only say the right words you go to the right ritual.
For us may be baptism. They have put their trust in that ritual in something they did. And so if if you or I try to undermine their trust in that ritual We tell them that that their baptism or their prayer.
That it turns out didn't make any difference in their lives in their daily lives didn't change them any that maybe that didn't really save. We suggest to them that you maybe you ought to examine yourself.
If you're not if you're really saved if we suggest that They will most likely be very offended. You want to get just to just to get a glimpse of the fury that people like Thomas Cramer experience to try to undermine people's trust in Their ritual whatever ritual it is that they trust them.
You know the invitation that they responded to maybe their baptism if the Holy Spirit doesn't come and powerfully break through their hearts. They'll probably react badly. But to do that to the Lord's Supper to make it a foundation for salvation.
Instead of a proclamation of salvation is to forget what it's all about. Here they were taking the Lord's Supper in Corinth in the wrong way because they were not remembering what it was all about. So Paul tells them to remember four things remember his body second remember his blood and then remember yourself and finally remember others.
Do you remember his body. When we were beginning this church a little over ten years ago now We got to begin some of our own little traditions and It break away some from some other traditions. You know, otherwise we may have never just stopped and thought about like how to serve the Lord's Supper.
So we went to look for stuff for the Lord's Supper. You gotta you know, I got to get some stuff and Okay, we need cups, you know, like one of these cups and these tiny little Cups about the size of a thimble.
We got some of those. All right, and then there was the bread. And I looked at that and they sell these like the that time the Baptist bookstore these these tidy little you ever seen this tidy little squares of unleavened bread they saw all exactly the same.
Just about that about a half-inch squares. Unleavened they come already made in bulk little plastic pouches. I thought we had some. We were given some years ago. Thought it may still be there in the in the cupboard and I don't think they ever expire things like survival food.
You could you know, we have a nuclear war you can go for the communion stuff. They'll still be able to still be edible. Whether this but I looked at that that and I thought there's so neat. There's so uniform and tidy.
Everyone's the same and I looked at it. Yeah, this doesn't seem right. Not for the Lord's Supper. Is this is this neat? Perfect square to represent the body of the Lord. So I decided not to buy that it seemed better to me that we get our own bread perhaps unleavened and like they used for the Passover and We break it ourself.
And so it's it's it's jagged. It's it's it's broken. It's some of little people small pieces come off. It's. It's messy. Just as was the body of Jesus at the crucifixion. His death was not a you know was not a tidy.
Sterile execution like we might give a condemned criminal today. There was no neat table with clean straps and a professional needle gently inserted into a vein. He was brutally beaten lashed until the blood streamed out open sores with thorns pressed down into a scalp.
He was pushed around he was thrown down. Likely some burly soldier stepped his feet unto Jesus his arms to hold them in place while another pounded a spike through his wrist. And then the same was done to his ankles.
It was an ugly violent bloody mess. That's what we're supposed to remember. So when you hold that piece of bread. Is that why you remember the brutality of it and then do you think. Why all this brutality why why was it necessary because I sinned.
Do you remember that it's about you? Who deserve that brutality? You look at this and this is a shredded piece of flesh and you think. This is horrible and this had to happen for me. My sins are horrible.
That was what the that was the punishment. That I earned that justice demanded someone pay for my sins. Is that what you remember in verse 23 here and Paul says that he passed on to them and Now to us what he received from the Lord by being Jesus himself.
What Jesus taught this this Lord's Supper. Jesus instituted at the very time that he was being betrayed and he even knew it. He told you just to go do it quickly. The wheels were already turning leading to his death when he did the first Lord's Supper and with that in the air the Lord Jesus took the bread and amazingly enough He gave thanks.
Thanks for what. By the way, if you put yourself in his place, what's he giving? Thanks for? Just for the food, you know like a prayer before a meal because he's hungry. Not. I don't think he had much of an appetite.
Knowing what was coming the thrashing and the agony and the betrayals that he was about to receive but yet still He gave thanks. What did he give? Thanks for? He tells us here This is my body. Which is given for you.
So finally a way of salvation Would be provided for us. He could see all that was coming. He knew what was coming and yet over and above the bloody mess that he would have to go through on the way all the Way to the grave.
He could see that we needed his body and now Here it is for us. Our salvation is so great that even the one who gave up his body to acquire it for us gave thanks For it and so when we eat it our teeth bite down on that little piece of bread.
We are to remember it and let the reality of it sink down into our hearts like the bread does into our stomachs. Remember, do you remember his blood? The Lord Jesus also took a Cup with with wine red like blood and said this is the new covenant in my blood.
And the Old Covenant was instituted by the blood of animals beginning with Moses and Aaron Sacrificing the animals and spilling the blood on the altar. Of course, it was never really that the blood of bulls or goats could take away sins.
But it was all a way for them to remember and kind of remembering ahead of time. But at least to remember what they should already know remember their sins. Remember the cost of sin that it cost a life.
Already they were being taught in the Old Testament that that the wages of sin is death. Someone has to die to remember God's holiness and justice and remember they needed a Sacrifice. That sacrifice finally came when Christ shed his blood to wash away our sins our life is In his blood.
That's what we are to remember in the cup. So the Lord Jesus held up the cup. Said this is the new covenant in my blood. So here we've resolved one big conflict in church history. Some have said that in the Lord's Supper that the bread literally becomes his body and the the wine literally becomes his blood but here he says this, you know, this cup is the new covenant.
A Covenant is as agreement is a commitment like marriage is a covenant. It's a commitment of two people to one another symbolized often by by rings, but the rings are the marriage. You know if I said this is this is the my marriage make any sense.
It's a symbol. We would have said okay. It's symbolizing it. So here the cup is is the cup is not the covenant that would make no sense. It is it is symbolic of the covenant. His blood is what makes the covenant possible.
The this this cup stands for is symbolic of The covenant the the bread is the emblem of his body. Jesus died to create a covenant a commitment from God to his people. He covered the sins of his people with his blood and that makes it possible for God now to covenant Himself to us to commit himself to us for us to be in a relationship with him.
Because that that sin that was in the way has now been covered by his blood. So when we taste that cup, that's what we are to remember the covenant that God made the commitment that God has made with us.
Made possible by the blood of Jesus. Do you remember do you remember yourself? Because the Lord's Supper is this is this sacred thing a holy time to remember the body and blood of the Lord. We had better remember who we are.
When we take that bread and that cup. If we take it in a way that is not worthy. Then Paul writes in verse 27 that we will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord in some translations. There have it that we'll be guilty of sinning against or profaning or something like that here in the ESV.
It says we'll be guilty concerning that's kind of ambiguous. But in the Greek, it's just literally you will be guilty of The body and blood of the Lord. In other words it is as if we were we were one of those Who punched him and in flogged him and and pushed him and drove spikes through him as if we did it if We're treating the symbols of his body with contempt.
We're treating him with contempt. It's as if you you know. Trampled on our burn the American flag that shows how you feel about the country. If in a fit of rage you take off your wedding ring and fling it across the room.
That probably says something about how you feel about your spouse at that moment or maybe. Or your marriage. So, how do you how you treat? These symbols show you how you feel about the Lord. How do you treat these symbols?
With reverence and all remembering him. Or. How with boredom. Just another meaningless ritual or perhaps with superstition, you know, here's a way to get vaccinated against God's judgment. I somehow earn approval with God by taking this like it's like it's kind of kind of spiritual medicine.
Even though I even if I don't really love God. If we take this unworthily We are guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. Remember that. So we need to examine ourselves. Paul says so examine yourself so you can take it worthily at verse 28.
Remember ourselves. He says even judge ourselves at verse 31. Now will we if we examine ourselves we judge ourselves. Will we conclude that we are unworthy? Yes. Definitely we better if you don't conclude that you haven't judged yourself very well.
We we are all unworthy to take it, but he doesn't say. That is the unworthy who will be guilty before God he says it's those who take it unworthily. You can't help but be unworthy. You can't help to take it in an unworthy manner.
And perhaps the most most unworthy manner you can take it is to take it with this sort of smug Self-assurance just so proud of your religion in your life and just take it. Flippantly, you're just certain That God don't have anything against you that you're fine.
Sure that you are worthy to come to the Lord's table. That's why I would not take it that one time. It was just so casual. I don't know. This is it, right? Whereas the worthy way to receive it is to know yourself to judge yourself.
Truly as he says in verse 30 know that in you there is no good thing that you deserve God's anger and judgment, but that Jesus gave his body for you. He even thanked the Father for so that he can save you.
He spilled his blood so that now God could do for you what you could never do for yourself. That's the worthy way to receive it. We also need to remember Where we're at now who we are the sinners, but also where we're at remember that we're not at the beginning.
That we're not before the sacrifice. Jesus offered one final sacrifice that deals with sin. We're not waiting on our sins to be taken care of now. That's finished. We remember things, you know when he says remember Jesus said do this in remembrance of me.
We remember things that are in the past and Jesus's finished sacrifice is all in the past. We're not waiting for it to be complete. It's already done but remember also That we're not at the end either.
Notice in verse 26. He says whenever we do this take the Lord's Supper. We proclaim the Lord's death that finished work. Until he comes he hasn't come yet. We're not at the end there is the now Christ has has been sacrificed.
So we have a new covenant with a law written on our hearts. We have forgiveness and new life and there is the not yet. He is still to come the Lord's Supper verse 26 says is a proclamation then. For this age for this time between his sacrifice and his coming again.
That's where we are now between what he has done on the cross and his resurrection and on the other hand What he will do When he returns so so in this in the Lord's Supper, we look back To what has been done and we look forward the implication in a verse 26 that we would we take the Lord's Supper until he comes is That when everything is finally complete when he has come.
Then we will no longer be taking the Lord's Supper, but for now We need to remember Where we are? Finally we need to remember each other. We need as in verse 29 to discern the body. Means think about the body what body.
Well, this was the Corinthians main problem. They apparently mix the Lord's Supper with a big fellowship meal. And there's nothing wrong with that per se. What is wrong is that the way they the way they ate and this big fellowship meal with the Lord's Supper mixed in it.
Showed that they weren't remembering each other in verse 18 the division show up again. There's divisions. There's parties and perhaps though when they came together for this meal. They had the Paul party and the Apollo's Party and the the Peter party and the Christ party.
They all said at their own different tables. Not talking to each other segregated. It would be today as if we had some churches that only allowed white people to attend. Or perhaps they were separated on the basis of economic status.
Here the rich the wealthy the aristocrats they they had to be anywhere so they can come early. And they could eat up all the food. Well the poor. You know, they were mostly slaves. They couldn't get off work and so they were allowed to so they come late and they'd come and there's nothing left for them.
Because the people came earlier didn't wait didn't leave them anything. So, you know in the people that came earlier didn't think of them. They were not remembering each other in this fellowship meal and because they weren't remembering each other Paul says that it is not then notice that in verse 20.
It is not. Because you're not remembering each other. It's not the Lord's Supper that you're eating is eating a church that does not remember the whole body. Remember all the people for whom Christ died that forgets people because of divisions or race.
Forget some because they you don't like that kind of person is not able not able to receive or serve The Lord's Supper they are better off if they did not meet at all. That's how Paul Paul begins. Your meetings are for or worse off than if you had not made it man at all.
Their meetings is here do more harm than good. Here is here. Some of them he says in verse 30 are weak. Some of them have died. Because they took the Lord's Supper without remembering the body without thinking of anyone but themselves.
Right, they're thinking it's just me and Jesus on the beach. The Lord's Supper is a great blessing. It's a way of participating in the death of Christ if we take it rightly, but if we take it wrongly It can be poison.
If your doctor gave you medicine and then told you if you take this the right way It'll strengthen you will cure you but if you take it the wrong way, you might kill you. I'll probably get your attention won't it?
I'm gonna make sure I take this the right way. I'll be careful. Here they weren't doing it the right way. And if we do not provide for the purity of the Lord's Supper. The Lord will and he will do it for our good.
He says in verse 32, you know, look at that verse of this context verse 32. Some of you weak some of you have died. So that you will not be judged with the world. He's saying first that Christ himself has punished some of them.
This is a weird idea or maybe for some of you Christ has punished some of them with sickness. The Lord has even killed some of them because they took the Lord's Supper unworthily. So what could have been medicine instead became poison and God did that.
God made some of them sick or even killed them. Notice in verse 32 in order to keep these people who are Christians in order to prevent them From being condemned with the world. In other words for the sake of their final salvation God put an end to their abuse of the body and blood of Christ.
By taking them as out of this world God took them in order to keep them from being damned to hell. Think about that. That's the real doctrine of eternal security, by the way. That is God preserving his Saints his people so that they will finally be saved.
Sometimes the Lord kills his people so he won't have to in the end destroy them. Sometimes the way of escape from temptation, you know, he talked about in chapter 10 God always provides a way of escape.
Sometimes that way of escape is the grave if we don't take any of the other ways he provides but here he says in verse 21 a verse 31 that we can avoid the poison if we will only remember the body and remember ourselves in our sins and needs.
Now at this point that we are to remember the body discern it think about it. Means you remember each other. It really goes back to the first point remember the body the physical body of Christ. If we don't remember each other the church.
We can't remember the body of Christ. If you mean the church or the physical body because they're just so much part of each other. You mean you can't separate Christ and his church. Notice that in verse 22 that those who came not remembering each other not waiting for others to show up they just kind of jumped in and helped themselves and ate as much as they like and drank their fill and.
And they mixed the Lord's Supper that what they thought was the Lord's Supper with all of that not get that thinking of anyone else just themselves. Paul tells them first if they're going to eat like that.
That is if they don't care about anyone else then go home and eat where there is no one else. But then he accuses them of despising. By acting like that. No thought of anyone else you're despising The Church of God.
The assembly of God's people gathered together by not remembering each other. They despise the church the body of Christ the group of people for whom Christ died and so in verse 27 They or we are guilty of the body and blood of the Lord they or we if we did that maybe may have plenty of bread and juice but it's not the Lord's Supper and We are worse off for pretending it was.
So these people who were despising the church by only thinking of themselves eating their fill while not caring that others were coming and with Nothing to eat and and calling that the Lord's Supper. That is being guilty of the body and blood of Christ.
So the way we treat the church is. The way we treat Christ now, are you committed to it? Loving it. Even when I let you down or maybe are you bored with it? You know, why bother about praying for it or giving to it or.
You know, maybe you think you love Jesus, but why bother about the church? Here Paul says the truth is if you don't really love the church. You don't love Christ. You cannot separate Christ from his body.
Remember that do you remember? It is in some places so often emphasized even by Reformed people so often emphasized what the Lord's Supper is not that we can forget what it is. We cannot be so afraid of returning, you know to old superstitions that we back away from all that the Lord's Supper is in it.
We can experience the reality. The benefit of the crucifixion of Jesus to a degree in our hearts that the mere words cannot convey to our minds. We can by faith Feast on Christ in our spirits sharing in his death and so to sharing in his resurrection life.
That's what Thomas Cranmer was willing to die for. Holding his hand out into that fire. He saw the body of Christ that it had been given for us and when we examine ourselves and We extend our hand to take it.
We should see that too. Do you remember? Do you remember your sin and guilt. Do you remember that God's anger against sin is so great that he punished it and his beloved Son on the cross? Do you remember that Jesus Christ is your only Savior and you can trust in nothing other for your salvation than the sacrifice that Christ?
Paid gave on the cross. Do you remember he rose from the dead and That you are waiting on him. Do you have faith? That remembers him. Well, if so, we're told that our faith will bear fruit in remembering him.
No, what is that fruit? We have a covenant which expresses how we commit to remember each other. There's a copy of it in your bulletin or it will should be projected soon. The covenant is based on scripture from which it gets its authority.
It should help us examine ourselves and judge ourselves as we're told here so that we unworthy people Can receive the Lord's Supper worthily? Remembering the body the blood our sins and each other. Although it's the covenant of this church all here who are true Christians are welcome to take the Lord's Supper with us.
It is after all the Lord's Supper. Even if you're not a member you should find the covenant helpful as it is a tool To help us to remember what we're all called to do to discern the body because again expresses the teachings of Scripture and we read It at this time to help us remember.
The purpose of this is not to so intimidate you as to refraining from taking the Lord's Supper. It is to get you, right? So that you can take it worthily with reverence and all. It would it would be better to refrain from taking the Lord's Supper than to take it unworthily.
But it would be best if we use this time to judge ourselves examine ourselves. Consider the body and be able to receive the Lord's Supper thankfully worthily and for our benefit.