(Note: prior to preaching, discreetly place an empty chair on the platform, off to one side)
•In the last few weeks, I’ve had several people call me about when we’re having Communion
•It’s customary in the Seventh-day Adventist church to hold Communion on a quarterly basis; and those who have been keeping track know that January is the beginning of the first quarter of 2005, which explains why the question is on the minds of some
•As such, we will be celebrating the Lord’s supper together next week
•So for those of you who have been wondering, now you know
•I must admit, I was a little surprised at being asked by at least four or five different people about when we’re having communion, and it got me to thinking
•You see, even though we only celebrate this special event four times a year, for many of us it has come to be a familiar part of our Christian experience
•The foot washing service, the bread, the grape juice – all of it becomes, for some, a commonplace experience; a matter of habit, and perhaps (dare I say it), even a matter of ritual or tradition
•Every three months, like clockwork, it comes around
•And every three months we pull out the basins and towels, we fill the cups and we bake the bread
•Then we wash each other’s feet, eat the bread, drink the cup, and put it all away again for another three months, when we’ll do it all over again
•Some of us have lived this experience dozens of times over the years
•On the other hand, some of us have never experienced it before
•But whether this is the first, or tenth, or fortieth time we will come to the table, there is something we must always consider
1 Corinthians 11:23-29
•This passage serves as an alarm
•Each time we come together at the Communion table, it warns us that if we eat the bread and drink the grape juice in an unworthy manner, we bring condemnation on ourselves
•We become guilty of the body and blood of Jesus – we crucify Him all over again, and make mockery of His sacrifice
•There is a danger, then, in participating in a Communion service such as we shall have next Sabbath, if we are not found worthy to do so in God’s eyes
•And we’re talking about more than mere spiritual ramifications here
•Notice what Paul says in verse 30 – that the church’s attitude toward communion has not only left many weak and sick, but has actually resulted in some people dying
•Now I don’t know about you, but I would be thinking twice about taking Communion if I thought I might wind up dead because of it
•This is actually why I’ve tried to make a point over time of preaching the Communion sermon the week before Communion, instead of the week of Communion
•There needs to be some preparation before we approach the Lord’s Table
•Communion is so important that we need to take the time and ask the question, “Why would I be unworthy?”, as well as the question, “How can I be worthy?”
•Before we come to the Lord’s Supper, Scripture tells us that there must be an examination of our lives, of our thoughts, of our motives, of our attitudes
•And the same Scriptures tell us specifically what we should be looking for
•Look with me again at verse 29
•Condemnation comes, we are told, if we eat and drink unworthily
•And unworthiness comes, we are told, because when we eat and drink, we fail to discern the Lord’s body
•Now, what you’ve got to realise is that the Word of God is talking about more than just understanding the symbolism in the bread and cup, here
•You’ll notice in verse 23 that Paul says that he’s explained the imagery behind the bread and the grape juice before
•It’s obvious he’s not talking about failing to decipher the meaning of Communion
•It has to do with something else – stay with me for a moment and we’ll figure it out
•Look with me once more at the very end of verse 29
•What does Paul say we fail to discern? The Lord’s body
•Now why is only the body mentioned here? Why not the blood?
•Up to now in this passage, every time the body of Christ is mentioned, so is His blood
•Yet here, it is very clear that condemnation comes only from not discerning the body
•Could it be that Paul is talking about more than the body of Christ as represented by the bread?
•Keep that in mind, now, and turn over with me one chapter, to 1 Corinthians 12, and look at verse 27
•What is the body of Christ? We are, all of us together; for you see the “you” being spoken of here is in the plural in Greek
•It’s not referring to each of us individually, but to all of us as we gather as one
•Still with me? Okay, now we’ll pull it all together
•Turn with me again, this time to Matthew 18:20
•As we come together in worship, we are inviting the presence of Jesus to be with us
•What Jesus is telling us here, is that when we gather in His name, He shows up
•Quite literally, Jesus takes a seat in our midst
•Do you understand what I’m saying, church? – Jesus is right here, right now, and He has been for the last couple of hours
•He was here for Sabbath School
•He was here for Song Service
•He’s sitting here even as I speak
•And He’ll be staying for potluck after church
•Have you ever thought about it that way before?
•Because what Paul is talking about, when he says we fail to discern the Lord’s body, is that we fail to recognise His presence in our assembly
•Let me ask you, church: Why are you here this morning?
•I can tell you why some of you are here this morning
1. Some of you are here this morning because you’ve got to be here
•Somebody’s told you, “You have no choice in the matter”, and so you really don’t want to be here, but you’ve come because you have to
2. And I can tell you that some of you have come here today to make a statement
a) Now for some of you, it’s a fashion statement
•You’ve come here today, dressed in your
finest, not out of any sense of reverence, but
to show off your sense of style to the rest of
God’s people
b) Or maybe you’re here to check out everyone
else’s fashion statements
•You’re here to criticise the length of
someone’s skirt (or maybe it’s the lack of
length), or the fact that someone’s wearing
jeans, or jewellery, or just a little too much
makeup to suit your liking
c) Some of you are here today to make a political
statement
•You’re here with an agenda, and
•You’re using the Sabbath School as a platform
to promote it
•You’re out lobbying fellow church
members in the foyer, trying to sway them to
your way of thinking
d) And I know that a few of you are here to make
a slanderous statement
•You’re here to spread gossip
•To make criticising and cutting remarks
against others while their backs are turned
away
•Filling the minds of those who listen with
doubt and negativity toward their brothers
and sisters in Christ
•I think I’ve stepped on enough toes now
•But stop and think about it; ask yourself the question, “Why am I here?”
•I know that some of you are here for these reasons, because I myself have come to church for the exact same reasons in times past
•But today, I’m not here because somebody told me I had to be
•I’m not here to make a statement, fashion or otherwise
•No, I’m here this morning to meet with Jesus
•Because I am told in the Word of God that when I get together with God’s people, Jesus is going to be here too, and I don’t want to miss the opportunity to see Him
•Now, don’t get me wrong – we don’t only meet Him at church, or at Midweek Meeting
•We don’t have to be with other believers to spend time with Him
•The Bible says we can meet Jesus one-on-one, and that we should take time daily to spend with Him on a personal level
•In fact, it’s that personal one-on-one time that makes Him that much more present in the group gatherings, because each of us brings that personal encounter with us
•The funny thing is that oftentimes when we get together, we somehow forget that He’s even here
•Now, if we come to church from week to week, and we’re so caught up in ourselves and those around us that we fail to meet Him, that’s one thing
•But if we come to the table of Christ next week and aren’t looking for Him instead of looking at everything and everyone else – well, that’s another thing entirely – and it’s much, much more dangerous
•To tell you the truth, I’d rather have five people here next week who are ready to meet Jesus, than a whole church full of people eating and drinking condemnation upon themselves
•And so it’s time that we started taking things a little more seriously
•The Bible says that when we come here each week, we come to meet with Jesus
•And when we come and eat the bread, we come to be reminded of the life that Jesus lived for us – to be reminded that He wants to give us life
•Not mere existence, but real life, abundant and free here on earth, and in the end, life everlasting
•When we come and drink the juice, we come to be reminded of His death for us – of the blood He shed for us on the cross of Calvary
•The blood He shed to cleanse us of our sins
•To wash us clean of our critical attitudes, of our self-seeking, of our hurtful words and actions
•When we come to Him, we are assured of His love for us – a love that drove Him from the courts of Heaven to walk this decrepit and wicked earth, and to live that life and die that death, because it was the only way you and I could be made right with God
•Oh, friends, let’s not miss meeting with Jesus when we come together – let’s not fail to discern His presence here with us
•And let’s not fail to respond to Him today
•Most of you I’m sure have noticed by now that I’ve put an empty chair up here this morning
•This chair is here to remind us that Jesus is here, sitting with us
•If you want to meet Him this morning, then I invite you to come to the front today, and imagine that Jesus is sitting in this chair
•I invite you to come to the front just now if you’d like to meet Jesus this morning
•If you long for the assurance of salvation – the knowledge that your past is forgiven and you’re right with God – come to the front and meet Jesus; receive His forgiveness, and His offer to make your whole life new
•Maybe you’ve been coming to church for awhile, and you want to make a commitment to Jesus in baptism – come join us here at the front and let Him know that’s your desire
•And if you realise that the only way to be ready to take Communion next Sabbath is by being right with Jesus, come meet Him just now, and let Him make you ready
•Wherever you are, come and meet Jesus
•And as we meet Jesus, would you join me in singing “The Sweetest Name of All"
(Prayer)
