Holy Communion
by Bill Bergstrom
Now, let us look at what it means to go on the journey of knowing, loving, and following Jesus, by taking a brief look at the second sacrament Jesus gave to us, Holy Communion, also called The Lord’s Supper or The Eucharist.
The Passover
Just before his Crucifixion Jesus celebrated the Passover with his disciples. The Passover feast was a continuous reminder to Israel that they were enslaved by the Egyptians and powerless to free themselves. They had cried out to God to free them, and God heard their cry for deliverance from slavery. Through Moses and the ten plagues they saw that God had not forgotten them, that he cared deeply for them, and that he had a plan for them. Because he loved and cared for them, God came against and defeated the overwhelming power that enslaved them, culminating in their deliverance through the parted waters of the Red Sea, and the destruction of the Egyptian army in the sea. The Israelites understandably had a great celebration after they had crossed through the sea and saw the destruction of the Egyptian Army.
The yearly Passover meal was a celebration of all God had done to free them, with the focus on the last plague when the Angel of Death killed the firstborn of the Egyptians but passed over the homes of the Israelites because they had placed the blood of an innocent lamb over the doorposts of their homes.[a]
However, it soon became apparent that God had remembered them not only to deliver them from slavery; he had also delivered them to shape them into a people who would love, trust, and obey him, and to send them on a mission that would bless the entire world. Throughout the books of Exodus through Deuteronomy God revealed to the people of Israel that they were his treasured possession and that in response they would listen to him and obey him. Doing so, they would be a “kingdom of priests and a holy people … so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth.” This meant they would be a nation through whom God would reveal himself to the rest of the world. Therefore, their lives individually, and as a community, would be lived in such a way that the world would be drawn to God and blessed by becoming his people.[2]
Passover Continues Today in Holy Communion
The last Passover meal occurred when Jesus celebrated it with his disciples the day before he was crucified. What occurred at that meal is highly symbolic and has profound significance in helping us understand the deeper meaning of the life, death, Resurrection, and Ascension of Jesus, and the impact it is to have on our individual lives and the life of the Church. The message of the Passover continues today through Holy Communion and has the same purpose in the Church today. We understand the story of the Jewish people as a foretelling, or a prediction, of the purpose of the Church. Because this is true, we must not receive Holy Communion lightly! It is given to us by Jesus Christ himself to continually remember what God has done for us, and as a response what we are to do for God as we forget ourselves and live for his glory![3]
As we celebrate Holy Communion, we must first remember that we are helpless to overcome the power of sin in our lives. But God has not forgotten us! He loves us deeply and has come to rescue us from the bondage and guilt of sin and eternal death. God rescued us by sending his son Jesus who opened the door to paradise where he now sits at the right hand of his Father.[4] We receive the gift of salvation when we humbly come to God seeking his forgiveness, and he responds by forgiving us, delivering us from the power of sin and eternal death, and receiving us as his child.[5]
As we are reminded of how Jesus went through the denials and betrayals before his death, we are to remember that we also have often denied and betrayed him by not following him.[6] We have not forgiven others as he forgave us[7], and are in deep need of his continuing forgiveness. Therefore, before we take Holy taken the cup and given thanks he gave it to them saying, “Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.”[8] Their sins would now be ‘passed over!’ Jesus then said, “do this in remembrance of me,”[9] making it a sacrament.
Holy Communion is a calling and commitment, in response to all that Jesus Christ has done for us, to live as Spirit empowered followers of Christ. As people who use the life of Christ as our model for how to live as Christians, we seek to draw others to Christ as we fulfill the Great Commandment and Great Commission given to us by Jesus himself. [10]
We might think of Holy Communion as a summary of the great story of the People of God, and what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ who is anxiously waiting for his return. It is a ritual that enacts what lies at the very heart of the Christian faith. It continuously reminds us of what it means to make our baptism a reality on our journey through life as followers of Jesus Christ, as we proclaim Christ to the world.
[1] SeeExodus 12:3-5, Exodus 15:1-21, Leviticus 23:12, Hebrews 9:14, 1 Peter 1:19
[2] See Genesis 12:3, 22:18, 26:4, 28:14, Exodus 9:13-16, 19:3-6, Deuteronomy 4:20, 6:1-2, 4-5, 10:12-13, Acts 3:25, Galatians 3:8
[3] See 1 Corinthians 11:23-34
[4] See chapters four and five to review who Jesus is and how he opened the door to paradise.
[5] See Ephesians 1:7, Colossians 3:13, 1 John 1:9, 2:12
[6] See Matthew chapters 5-7, 25 and the first two pages of chapter 14 as summaries of what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ.
[7] See Matthew 6:12-15, 18:21-35, Mark 11:26, Colossians 3:12-15, Ephesians 4:32 to read about forgiving others.
[8] Matthew 26:26-28, also see Mark 14:22-24 and Luke 22:19-20
[9] Luke 22:19, 1 Corinthians 11:24-25
[10] Matthew 22:34-40, Matthew 28:18-20
The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis – Book 4, chapter 13
The Ardent Longing of Devout Men For the Body of Christ
The Disciple
HOW great is the abundance of Your kindness, O Lord, which You have hidden from those who fear You!
When I think how some devout persons come to Your Sacrament with the greatest devotion and love, I am frequently ashamed and confused that I approach Your altar and the table of Holy Communion so coldly and indifferently; that I remain so dry and devoid of heartfelt affection; that I am not completely inflamed in Your presence, O my God, nor so strongly drawn and attracted as many devout persons who, in their great desire for Communion and intense heart love, could not restrain their tears but longed from the depths of their souls and bodies to embrace You, the Fountain of Life. These were able to appease and allay their hunger in no other way than by receiving Your Body with all joy and spiritual eagerness. The faith of these men was true and ardent—convincing proof of Your sacred presence. They whose hearts burn so ardently within them when Jesus lives with them truly know their Lord in the breaking of bread.
Such affection and devotion, such mighty love and zeal are often far beyond me. Be merciful to me, O sweet, good, kind Jesus, and grant me, Your poor suppliant, sometimes at least to feel in Holy Communion a little of the tenderness of Your love, that my faith may grow stronger, that my hope in Your goodness may increase, and that charity, once perfectly kindled within me by tasting heavenly manna, may never fail.
Your mercy can give me the grace I long for and can visit me most graciously with fervor of soul according to Your good pleasure. For although I am not now inflamed with as great desire as those who are singularly devoted to You, yet by Your grace I long for this same great flame, praying and seeking a place among all such ardent lovers that I may be numbered among their holy company.
The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis – Book 4, chapter 18
Man Should Not Scrutinize This Sacrament In Curiosity,
But Humbly Imitate Christ and Submit Reason To Holy Faith
The Voice of Christ
BEWARE of curious and vain examination of this most profound Sacrament, if you do not wish to be plunged into the depths of doubt. He who scrutinizes its majesty too closely will be overwhelmed by its glory.
God can do more than man can understand. A pious and humble search for truth He will allow, a search that is ever ready to learn and that seeks to walk in the reasonable doctrine of the fathers.
Blest is the simplicity that leaves the difficult way of dispute and goes forward on the level, firm path of God’s commandments. Many have lost devotion because they wished to search into things beyond them.
Faith is required of you, and a sincere life, not a lofty intellect nor a delving into the mysteries of God. If you neither know nor understand things beneath you, how can you comprehend what is above you? Submit yourself to God and humble reason to faith, and the light of understanding will be given you so far as it is good and necessary for you. Some are gravely tempted concerning faith and the Sacrament but this disturbance is not laid to them but to the enemy.
Be not disturbed, dispute not in your mind, answer not the doubts sent by the devil, but believe the words of God, believe His saints and prophets and the evil enemy will flee from you. It is often very profitable for the servant of God to suffer such things. For Satan does not tempt unbelievers and sinners whom he already holds securely, but in many ways he does tempt and trouble the faithful servant.
Go forward, then, with sincere and unflinching faith, and with humble reverence approach this Sacrament. Whatever you cannot understand commit to the security of the all-powerful God, Who does not deceive you. The man, however, who trusts in himself is deceived. God walks with sincere men, reveals Himself to humble men, enlightens the understanding of pure minds, and hides His grace from the curious and the proud.
Human reason is weak and can be deceived. True faith, however, cannot be deceived. All reason and natural science ought to come after faith, not go before it, nor oppose it. For in this most holy and supremely excellent Sacrament, faith and love take precedence and work in a hidden manner.
God, eternal, incomprehensible, and infinitely powerful, does great and inscrutable things in heaven and on earth, and there is no searching into His marvelous works. If all the works of God were such that human reason could easily grasp them, they would not be called wonderful or beyond the power of words to tell.
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