1 COR. 11:17-34: “When We Come
Together To Remember The Lord”
By
1.
INTRO:
1.1.
In our last study we looked
at what Paul wrote about God-given
roles men and women designated for the church and home
1.2.
In our study today we are going to look at the admonitions that Paul
gave to the church concerning the Lord’s Supper
1.2.1. Paul tells the Corinthians
that they were to correct some of their behavior when they came together for
the celebration of the Lord’s Supper
1.2.2. Paul also tells them some of
the consequences that had occurred among them because of not regarding the
Lord’s Supper in the proper way
1.2.3. Paul gives the Corinthians
some exhortations concerning the preparation of heart that Christians need to
make before partaking of the Lord’s Supper
2.
VS 11:17 - “17 But in giving this instruction, I do
not praise you, because you come together not for the better but for the worse.” - Paul tells
the Corinthians that when they come together as a church to celebrate the
Lord’s Supper that it is not for the better but for the worse
2.1.
Paul had just previously told the Corinthians in this letter that he
praised them because in all things they remembered him and the traditions that
they had been taught. However, Paul now
tells them that he does not praise them because of the way they were carrying
on when they did come together as a church.
2.2.
The night before He was crucified, Jesus planned and orchestrated a
Passover feast with His disciples, and then during that feast He instituted
what we call the “Lord’s Supper”, or what is referred to as “Communion”, when
He told them as He was passing the bread and wine to them that they were to “do
this in remembrance of Me.” Jesus
reference was to remember Him during the Passover Feast itself, however the
early church had adopted the practice of regularly having “love feasts” which
were similar to a Passover Feast, and then during these feasts they would
according to Jesus’ command remember the Lord by taking together the bread and
wine, and considering what they symbolize in Jesus.
2.3.
The Lord Jesus only instituted two things that the disciples were to
observe, the Lord’s Supper and Baptism.
2.4.
Neither Jesus nor the apostles called or referred to water baptism or
the Lord’s Supper as ‘sacraments’, as some churches have called them. Rather, He just taught His disciples to
observe them. The word ‘sacrament’ is
not found in the New Testament, but came to be invented and used by the church
much later.
2.4.1. The idea of the sacrament
was at first just considered a ‘pledge or security deposit’ or ‘oath’ to the
Lord. But, soon in church history the
word ‘sacrament’ began to be viewed by the church as a means or cause of
receiving grace from the Lord. This was
notion of receiving grace through these institutions is not supported by the
New Testament however.
2.4.2. Originally, the church used
the term ‘sacrament’ for baptism and the Lord’s Supper, but as church history
went on the church continued to add it’s traditions to the faith and the number
of sacraments continued to be added, until finally between 7 and 30 were named
and practiced by churches, and it came to be believed by these churches that if
a person didn’t participate in all of the sacraments that they would not go to
heaven since they hadn’t received grace from God. Over time, in these churches living by faith
came to be replaced by external rites that one merely had to perform.
2.4.3. The churches also began
early to believe that by mere observance of rites that participants would
receive grace from the Lord, regardless of the state of the internal condition
of the person. However, as Jesus so
clearly taught His disciples and the religious leaders of His day, the internal
condition of the heart of the person has everything to do with their
spirituality and being pleasing to God, and no external acts or rites can
substitute for a heart that is right with the Lord.
2.4.4. However, Jesus simply taught
His disciples to ‘baptize’ new converts to the faith and to observe the Lord’s
supper in remembrance of Him, so that’s where we in the Calvary Chapels also
leave it.
2.5.
Also, the word Greek word “koinonos” which could be translated in the
New Testament as “communion” or “fellowship” is not used in the New Testament
in reference to the Lord’s Supper. The
Latin word “communus” came at a point in church history to be used by the
church when referring to the Lord’s Supper much after the time of the New
Testament. The word or concept of
“communion” is also a bit of a misnomer when used in reference to the Lord’s
Supper however, as it was used because of the belief of some churches that when
Christians partake of the elements of the Lord’s Supper that they are through
those elements ‘communing’ or ‘fellowshipping’ with God. However, celebrating the Lord’s Supper is not
a means of communing with God anymore than other activities that a Christian
does. At the church here we do still
use the term “communion” in our bulletins, but we’re not married to it and we
use it only because Christians recognize it.
The term, “Lord’s Supper”, is
actually better to use than this word than “communion”, since it is the word
that is used in the New Testament, plus it also more accurately conveys what
the celebration should be about.
2.5.1. What is important is that
Christ and His work are remembered by taking as symbols bread and wine or
juice.
2.5.2. We tend to forget what’s
important so easily, therefore the Lord knew we needed to regularly observe the
Lord’s Supper so we’d always remember Him and what He did for us.
2.6.
It doesn’t matter what type of bread or what type of grape juice we
use. The Lord gave us no formula in the
scriptures for how the Lord’s Supper is celebrated. We are simply commanded to partake of the
elements and remember, with our hearts yielded to Him, what Jesus did for us on
the cross of
2.7.
Jesus didn’t tell His disciples how often to observe the Lord’s Supper,
and we also do not know how often the early church had their “love feasts”, but
some have conjectured that it was with much frequency.
2.8.
Paul tells the Corinthians that their “love feasts” which should be a
good thing, edifying to all of the body, had not made them any the better, but
instead the church was actually worse off because of meeting.
2.8.1. This rebuke must have been
shocking to the Corinthian church.
2.8.2. This rebuke of Paul’s to the
church reminds me of Is. 1:13-17 where Isaiah told the Israelites
that the Lord hated their solemn worship assemblies because of where their
hearts were at when they attended them, “13 "Bring your worthless
offerings no longer, Incense is an abomination to Me. New moon and Sabbath, the
calling of assemblies-- I cannot endure iniquity and the solemn assembly. 14 "I
hate your new moon festivals and your
appointed feasts, They have become a burden to Me. I am weary of bearing them. 15 "So when you spread out your
hands in prayer, I will hide My eyes
from you, Yes, even though you multiply prayers, I will not listen. Your hands
are covered with blood. 16 "Wash
yourselves, make yourselves clean; Remove the evil of your deeds from My sight.
Cease to do evil, 17 Learn to do good; Seek justice, Reprove the ruthless; Defend
the orphan, Plead for the widow”.”
2.9.
Just because Christians come together as a body in Christ, does not
mean that they are pleasing to the Lord.
2.9.1. When there is togetherness,
it does not necessarily mean that there is ‘holiness’, nor ‘unity’ in the
body.
2.9.2. We in the church must always
work on perfecting ‘holiness’ and ‘unity’ as a body.
3.
VS 11:18-19 - “18 For, in the first place, when you
come together as a church, I hear that divisions exist among you; and in part,
I believe it. 19
For there must also be factions among you, in order that those who are
approved may have become evident among you.”
- Paul tells the Corinthians that the
first thing that is wrong is that when they come together that he has heard
that they have divisions amongst themselves
3.1.
Paul’s first exhortation in this letter to the church at
3.2.
Paul had heard some rumors of what happened when the church at
3.3.
Paul tells the church in verse 19 that the Lord allows there to be
factions among His church because it allows peoples’ real character to come
out, and it is an opportunity for the church to grow. Also, those who are spiritually mature, or
‘are approved’, become ‘evident’ in their midst when adversity hits.
3.4.
We in the church must realize that we can never be pleasing to the Lord
if we are divisive in the body of Christ towards our brothers and our
sisters. The Lord’s body must be in one
mind in order for us to be pleasing to God.
3.4.1. So many churches in our
country today came about as a result of a split off from another church,
however the foundation upon which those churches which came about that way was
usually just an act of the flesh, and striving in the flesh. If the foundation or root of a church has
been division that has resulted from a work of the flesh, how can a truly good
work result from such a fleshly beginning.
God refused to acknowledge or bless Abraham’s Ishmael which came about
as a result of a work of his flesh, so I don’t see how He will ever bless a
work of the flesh in our lives!
3.4.2. As much as is possible, we
must set aside our own selfish desires and ambitions in order to promote that
which is best for the body as a whole, that which promotes unity within the
body of Christ.
4.
VS 11:20-21 - “20 Therefore when you meet together, it
is not to eat the Lord's Supper, 21 for in your eating each one takes his own
supper first; and one is hungry and another is drunk.” - Paul tells
the Corinthians that when they come together that it is evident from their
attitudes that their motive is not really to celebrate the Lord’s Supper
4.1.
Paul tells the church that their hidden motives for coming together
were wrong because:
4.1.1. The wealthier brethren were
eating of their own food first.
4.1.2. When the poorer brothers
finally came to the table there was nothing left for them to eat since some had
eaten too much.
4.1.3. The meetings had turned into
a big drunken binge for some.
4.2.
The Lord’s Supper was meant to draw people together, bringing them each
and all together humbly before Christ’s throne to receive mercy. The very thing that the “love feasts” were
meant to do had been completely undone because of the things the church was
doing.
4.2.1. The poor brothers were being
mistreated, and the wealthy ones were being rude and glutinous, and some were
getting drunk.
4.3.
In the Old Testament, the Lord says He does not delight in sacrifices
when our hearts are not right before Him and we have unconfessed sin in our
life.
4.3.1. We have already seen how
that Isaiah wrote in Is. 1:13-17 about how that the Lord despises our
worship services when our hearts are not right before Him.
4.3.2. Likewise, Jeremiah wrote in Jer.
7:8-11 about how God’s people must not allow sinful works to rule in their
lives while they are also trying to please God with their sacrifices, “8 "Behold,
you are trusting in deceptive words to no avail. 9 "Will you steal, murder, and
commit adultery, and swear falsely, and offer sacrifices to Baal, and walk
after other gods that you have not known, 10 then come and stand before Me in
this house, which is called by My name, and say, 'We are delivered!'-- that you
may do all these abominations? 11 "Has this house, which is called by My
name, become a den of robbers in your sight? Behold, I, even I, have seen it," declares the LORD”.
4.4.
As I mentioned previously, we Christians must realize that the Lord is
not pleased with mere outward religious rites and exercises which we
perform.
4.4.1. We must realize that what is
on the inside in our heart is what really matters to God.
4.4.2. We must have our hearts
right before God to be pleasing to Him.
4.4.3. We cannot appease God by
anything less than obedience to His commands, and giving Him genuine heart felt
worship and reverence.
5.
VS 11:22 - “22 What! Do you not have houses in
which to eat and drink? Or do you despise the
5.1.
Paul tells the Corinthians in this verse that they ought to eat at
home, and not make the assembly of the church the place where they eat and
drink. Paul tells them that they had
been despising the church, and that they had been bringing shame to their
poorer brothers, who ‘have nothing”.
5.1.1. We in the church must always
be careful to have compassion on those who are less fortunate and are living in
a state of poverty, and not harden our heart against them.
5.1.2. God often calls us to help
people out who have material needs. For
instance, His word says He wants His people
to defend and take care of the widow and the orphan.
5.2.
Paul tells the Corinthians that there is no way that he can praise them
for their conduct. They must deal with
their sin in this area and repent!
6.
VS 11:23-24 - “23 For I received from the Lord that
which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was
betrayed took bread; 24 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."” - Paul tells
the Corinthians about the event when Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper for His
disciples: the bread symbolized His
body
6.1.
Paul tells the Corinthians now what he had received from Jesus (special
revelation) concerning the Lord’s Supper.
This teaching about the observance of the Lord’s Supper came to him
straight from Jesus’ lips.
6.2.
Paul tells them that what he had received concerning the Lord’s Supper,
he had “already” passed on to them. This
wasn’t something new, he was just reiterating what he had already taught them.
6.3.
Paul reminds the Corinthians that it was on the night that Jesus was
betrayed that He had instituted the Lord’s Supper. From the gospels we see that Jesus celebrated
the Passover meal with His disciples the night that He was betrayed.
6.4.
We in the Calvary Chapel’s do not believe in ‘transubstantiation’, that
the bread and the wine become the body and blood of the Lord and we receive
grace by taking those elements. Rather,
as these next verses show, the Lord’s Supper was given so that we would be
caused to ‘remember’ Jesus.
6.5.
It was appropriate that Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper on the night
before the Passover because the Passover event itself was an Old Testament type
that pointed to what Jesus would do upon the cross for the sins of men. The Passover meal was given in remembrance of
the Israelites miraculous exodus from bondage in
6.5.1. The cup which was passed
around was to be in remembrance of the blood that was placed upon the lintels
and door posts of the Israelites’ houses.
In the morning when the Destroyer had passed over the country, everyone
whose house had not the covering blood lost their first born, both of man and
beast.
6.5.1.1.The blood of Jesus now covers
the sins of all those who place their faith in Him for salvation. The salvation which we born-again Christians
receive through Christ is a salvation from death, present as well as future.
6.5.2. The unleavened bread which
the Israelites ate during that meal was symbolic of their exodus out of
6.5.2.1.The body of Jesus meant to
the Jews more than just the physical aspect of His body, it represented His
entirety.
6.5.2.2.Through Jesus’ incarnation
and life amongst us we are forever changed, and set free from all that binds
us.
6.5.2.3.In His body, Jesus was
willing to suffer to the nth degree in order that we might have His suffering
and death be the full and complete payment for all of our sins, present, past,
and future.
6.6.
All of the elements of the Passover Feast were types that pointed to
Jesus and what He would do upon the cross of
6.7.
Jesus said that His body was, ‘for us’, because it was sacrificed
entirely for our salvation.
6.8.
Jesus taught that we are to celebrate the Lord’s Supper regularly,
however He did not specify how frequently we were to celebrate it. Some churches celebrate the Lord’s Supper
every time they meet, some once a week, some once a month, some once a
year. We in this fellowship celebrate
the Lord’s Supper on the first Sunday morning of every month.
6.9.
He said, ‘Do this in remembrance of Me’. Jesus commands His church to think about,
identify with, and remember all that He did for us at
6.10. We in the church must always
consider all that the Lord has done for us whenever we take communion with our
brothers and our sisters.
7.
VS 11:25-26 - “25 In the same way He took the cup also, after supper, saying, "This cup is the
new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me." 26 For as often as you eat this bread
and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes.” - Paul tells
the Corinthians about the event when Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper for His
disciples: the wine symbolized His
blood
7.1.
At the conclusion of the Passover supper, Jesus also passed around the
cup to each of His disciples. He told
them that the cup is the ‘new covenant in my blood’.
7.2.
As I already mentioned it appears obvious from the scriptures that
Jesus did not teach that the bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper turn into the
actual body and blood of Jesus. Here, we
see that Jesus says that the wine, which symbols the ‘blood’ of Christ, is a
symbol of the ‘new covenant’ which God has made with His people.
7.2.1. The ‘new covenant’ is a
covenant not of law but one of grace, and thus it is also a covenant of life
not of death.
7.2.2. The ‘new covenant’ is a
covenant in which Jesus has provided that man’s sins be forgiven and covered
through His death on the cross and blood shed for the sins of the world.
7.2.3. In order to be saved, people
now only need to believe upon that finished work of Christ on the cross to be
the complete payment for all of their sins, as they repent and surrender their
wills to Christ.
7.3.
Jesus told His disciples to also remember Him whenever they drank the
cup during the Passover Feast, or when observing the Lord’s Supper.
7.4.
Jesus tells the Corinthians that in the wisdom of God, whenever His
church celebrates the Lord’s Supper, they are actually “proclaiming the gospel”
of His death for sinners. Thus, the
Lord’s Supper always provides a prime opportunity for the church to proclaim
the gospel to the lost.
7.5.
Jesus tells the Corinthians also that the Lord’s Supper is to remind
them of the future, for they proclaim His death, ‘Until He comes’. Thus, the second coming of Jesus is brought
to mind whenever the Lord’s Supper is celebrated.
8.
VS 11:27-29 - “27 Therefore whoever eats the bread or
drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body
and the blood of the Lord. 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him
eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For he who eats and drinks, eats and
drinks judgment to himself, if he does not judge the body rightly.” - Paul tells
the Corinthians that if they eat the bread or drink the cup of the Lord in an
unworthy manner that they shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord
8.1.
Because of all that the Lord’s Supper is to be symbolic of, if anyone,
‘Eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner’, he shall
be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord’.
8.1.1. It is as if they were
pounding afresh the nails into His hands and feet when people eat and drink the
elements of the bread and wine in an unworthy mannter.
8.2.
There are many ways to eat the bread and drink the cup in an unworthy
manner.
8.2.1. If a person eats of the
elements without really taking into account what they stand for, they are doing
so in an unworthy manner.
8.2.2. If a person eats the bread
and drinks the wine without getting his heart right with the Lord, and has any
unrepentant and unconfessed sin in his life, then he or she is eating and
drinking in an unworthy manner.
8.2.3. We in the Calvary Chapel
movement believe in an ‘open communion service’ and thus allow anyone who knows
Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior to participate. However, we also believe that if a person
participates in the Lord’s Supper who has not accepted Christ into his or her
life as their Lord and Savior, that this would be to partake of it in an
unworthy manner. Therefore, we request
that a person have a personal relationship with Christ in order to participate
in the Lord’s Supper.
8.2.3.1.It would of course be
acceptable for a person to on the spot yield their life to Christ and ask Him
to be their Lord and Savior and then participate in the Lord’s Supper.
8.3.
Paul tells the Corinthians that when they are celebrating the Lord’s
Supper they ought to ‘examine’ themselves before taking of the bread and the
cup, then they can partake of the elements without incurring God’s wrath
against them for their sin. When we take
communion we should examine our own hearts and whether or not we are following
Jesus as we should in our life:
8.3.1. We are to consider afresh
what Jesus did for us, and whether or not we truly are trusting Him as our
Savior and Lord?
8.3.2. We must consider whether or
not we are living by faith or in the flesh?
8.3.3. Are we truly trusting all of
His promises, or are we walking in unbelief?
8.3.4. We ought also to ‘examine’
ourselves to determine if there is any sin in our life which needs to be
confessed and repented of?
8.3.4.1.Remember, in observance of
the Passover, the Israelites were to eat no leavened bread and have no leaven
in their houses for the full week leading up to the Passover meal, and as we
saw in chapter 5 of this book, ‘leaven’ is symbolic of sin.
8.4.
Paul tells the Corinthians in verse 29 that if they do not judge their
sins accurately, then they will incur God’s judgment of discipline in their
life.
9.
VS 11:30 - “30 For this reason many among you are
weak and sick, and a number sleep.” - Paul tells the Corinthians that because they
had not been judging themselves as they should before celebrating the Lord’s
Supper that many among them were weak and sick and a number had died
9.1.
Paul tells the Corinthians that because they had treated the Lord’s
Supper lightly and in a superficial way, and thereby offended Jesus and His
body and blood, therefore many of the Corinthians were currently suffering
various infirmities and were sick, and a number of them had died.
9.1.1. Death here is referred to as
‘sleep’ as in several other places in the New Testament.
9.2.
God disciplines His children if they do not obey Him from the heart, and
if they do not judge their sin rightly, He may allow His children to suffer
various afflictions because of their disobedience.
9.2.1. God always loves His
children, for His love will never cease, however, the Lord will discipline any
child of His who refuses to listen to His correction. Just as every loving parent disciplines his
children, so the Lord disciplines every child that He has.
9.3.
We Christians must acknowledge that if we harden our hearts to the
Lord’s voice in our life, that we may suffer afflictions as the Corinthians
did, and the Lord may even retire us early from this earthly life.
9.3.1. We are no better than the
Corinthians were, and if we do the same things that they did the Lord may take
us home prematurely also.
10.
VS 11:31-32 - “31 But if we judged ourselves rightly,
we should not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord in
order that we may not be condemned along with the world.” - Paul tells
the Corinthians that if they will just judge themselves rightly as they should
that the Lord will not judge and discipline them
10.1. In verse 31, Paul gives the
Corinthians a tremendously comforting promise:
God will not discipline us if we will judge our sin rightly and not
allow it to remain in our life. If
Christians will be obedient to the light that they have been given, and when
they fall into sin just confess and repent of what they have done, then the
Lord will not have to cause them to suffer discipline at His hand.
10.2. Paul explains to the
Corinthians what his use of the word translated in this chapter as, ‘judgment’,
really refers to: ‘discipline’. The Lord promises to discipline every child
that He has. ‘
10.2.1.He loves us so much that He
will not allow us to go on forever with sin in our life that is zapping our
spiritual might and effectiveness.
10.2.2.If God did not ‘discipline’
us, then Paul says that we might be ‘condemned along with the rest of the
world’. A believer is one who is being
perfected by the Lord therefore if a person who claims to be a Christian is
never growing spiritually, then his salvation really should be questioned.
11.
VS 11:33-34 - “33 So then, my brethren, when you come
together to eat, wait for one another. 34 If anyone is hungry, let him eat at
home, so that you may not come together for judgment. And the remaining matters
I shall arrange when I come.” - Paul tells the Corinthians practically how to
correct the wrong ways in which they had been handling themselves when
celebrating the Lord’s Supper
11.1. In wrapping up his
exhortation to the Corinthians regarding the Lord’s Supper, Paul tells them how
they should act during their love feasts and the celebrating of the Lord’s
Supper.
11.1.1.When they come together for
the feast and the Lord’s Supper they should wait until everyone has had ample
time to get to the meeting before beginning to eat.
11.1.2.Paul tells them it is wrong
to come to the feast with a tremendous appetite. One should eat a meal at home before coming
if he is truly famished, then he can come to the meeting.
11.2. If they did not follow this
advice their meeting was nothing more than an opportunity for them to suffer
God’s ‘judgment’ upon them, which will result in His disciplining of them.
11.3. Paul tells them that he has
other instructions to pass on to them regarding their celebration of the Lord’s
Supper and worship, but he will wait until he comes to tell those things to
them.
11.4. We in the church must be
polite to our brothers and sisters, preferring them in love, and we must be
selflessly concerned about their needs and concerns, even above our own.
11.5. We in the church must also
learn to look beyond ourselves in our involvement in the church. The church is not a vehicle for us to carry
out our own agendas or for us to selfishly dominate things with our own fleshly
will. The body of Christ is holy and
precious in God’s sight.
11.6. We must always love and
cherish our brothers and sisters in Christ, and look at the big picture of
God’s kingdom in all of our involvement with the church.