1 Cor 11:17-34 • Holy Union Through Communion

Review & Overview

1. Previous Study’s Review

Now we said that Chp.11: deals with 2 more questions:   1. Worship Services.     &     2. Communion Services.     

Last time together we looked at Worship Services that involved Men & Women:       

Paul uses Head Coverings to drive home an important point about the Divine Order between Men & Woman…        Not only in the Church Setting…                 but           also in the Marriage Setting…

He also points out a great truth that Hierarchy & Equality are not mutually exclusive terms…

2. Current Study’s Overview

Now in vs.17 Paul deals with the 2nd question…     it’s about      Communion Services…      Read..

As you can see in our quick reading of todays scripture, the Corinthian believers are not observing the Lord’s Table as they should.

So Paul exposes their problem and then shows them how what The Lord’s Communion is all about.

If you’re taking notes 5 things we want to look at as it pertains to Lord’s Table or the Communion Service…

1. The Problem Vs. 17-22

1.1 They Were Divisive Vs. 17-18

Division: schism, 8,    tearing apart…     or     cutting away…  

We looked at the problem division back in chp.1:10 - 4:21, I’m of Paul, Apollos, Cephes… Christ…

Division stems from Prid`e…   I’m right & you’re wrong kind of attitude…  selfish & self-centered…

ILLUSTRATION: look into division illustration

1.2 They Were Heretical Vs. 19         

Faction:   hairesis,  9,    heresy,   It’s a circle of people w/ a comon purpose who come from another group.   which is the result of division… 

But God will use this behavior to point out who is really approved or who is a faithful saint.

1.3 They Had The Wrong Motive Vs. 20

1.4 They Were Selfish Vs. 21-22    

In the early days of the church, Christians celebrated the “agapē,” or love feast along with the Lord’s Supper.

Explain The love feast, it was shared in a spirit of love and fellowship.

At the end of the love feast though, the Christians often had the remembrance of the Lord with the bread and wine.

But after a while, abuses crept in. For instance, in this verse it is implied that the love feast lost its real meaning.

Not only did the Christians not wait for one another, but the rich ones shamed the poor brothers & sisters by having lavish meals and not sharing them.

Some event went away hungry, and others were actually drunk! And since the Lord’s Supper often followed the love feast, they would still be drunk when they sat down to partake of the Lord’s Supper

The apostle Paul is pretty much rebuking this behavior. At the very least if you are going to carry yourself in such a way do it at home. But they didn’t have the respect of God and they would behave this way at Church.

Ultimately, their behavior was selfish because they turned Godly Fellowship into a Wild Party…

They were only concerned about their own appetites…     their own wants…   their own desires…

Jude calls these type of gatherings a love feasts but they were not showing any love for others or for the Lord.

Jude 12 NKJV

12 These are spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried about by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots;

2. The Pattern Vs. 23-25

2.1 The Pattern Is Received from the Lord Vs. 23a

Communion is not a tradition of man it’s not a religious right or ritual, it’s Received from the Lord…

Jesus took the Passover meal commemorating the 10th plague in Ex.12: when the death angel passed over the house saving the 1st born because of the blood of the lamb…  so Israel was freed from the bondage of Egypt…

Jesus used it to point to the fact that death has passed over us & that we are free from the bondage of sin, death & hell…  by His shed blood…

John 1:29 NKJV

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

1 Peter 1:18–19 NKJV

18 knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.

2.2  The Pattern Represents the Lord Vs. 23b-25 (in 2 ways)

By His Body Vs. 23b - 24a - during the Passover meal the bread was broke in two & one piece was hid & the other put back into the linen cloth & pulled out later…   afikomen or desert…     the bread points to His Body in 3 ways…

1. Without Leaven:  leaven is a type of sin..  

1 Corinthians 5:6 NKJV

6 Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump?

And the Lord was without Sin...

2 Corinthians 5:21 NKJV

21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

Hebrews 4:15 NKJV

15 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.

1 John 3:5 NKJV

5 And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin.

2. Striped: 

Isaiah 53:5 NKJV

5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.

1 Peter 2:24 NKJV

24 who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed.

3. Pierced:  Zech.12:10 look on Him…

Zechariah 12:10 NKJV

10 “And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn.

By His Blood Vs. 25a - there are 4 cups in the Seder (Explain there are a lot of traditions at the dinner):  

Kaddush, blessing, 

Makkot, plagues,

Ha-Geulah, redemption, 

Halel, praise…       

after supper comes the 3rd cup, Ha-Geulah, redemption … 

Because through His blood we have been redeemed…    

Ephesians 1:7 NKJV

7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace

Hebrews 9:22 NKJV

22 And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission.

But the blood of bulls & goats only covered our sin…      but     Jesus’ blood took away our sin… 

Psalm 103:12 NKJV

12 As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us.

Hebrews 10:17 NKJV

17 then He adds, “Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”

3. The Purpose Vs. 26 & 28

3.1 Is To Look Backward to the Cross Vs. 24b, 25b, 26a

This speaks of His Death: We remember all the suffering Jesus went through…     

Isaiah 53:3–6 NKJV

3 He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. 4 Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.

Isaiah 53:7–10 NKJV

7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth. 8 He was taken from prison and from judgment, And who will declare His generation? For He was cut off from the land of the living; For the transgressions of My people He was stricken. 9 And they made His grave with the wicked— But with the rich at His death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was any deceit in His mouth. 10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand.

Isaiah 53:11–12 NKJV

11 He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, For He shall bear their iniquities. 12 Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, And He shall divide the spoil with the strong, Because He poured out His soul unto death, And He was numbered with the transgressors, And He bore the sin of many, And made intercession for the transgressors.

The mocking’s…  scourging’s…  being nailed to the cross…   &  probably experiencing the worst thing of all, that momentary separation between Him & the Father…  

Matthew 27:46 NKJV

46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

3.2 Is To Look Inward to the Conscience Vs. 28

Now we can’t come to the table in our own worth or righteousness…  

Isaiah 64:6 NKJV

6 But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away.

But when we come to faith in Christ, 1 John 1:9 confess… now we have the righteousness of Christ…

Philippians 3:9 NKJV

9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith;

But the problem is that we sin daily so we need to get right with God daily… we need to examine our lives…    

Psalm 139:23–24 NKJV

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; 24 And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting.

3.3 Is To Look Forward to the Crown Vs. 26

This speaks of His Coming:   this speaks of Him coming for His church…   the rapture… 

1 Thessalonians 4:16 NKJV

16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.

John 14:3 NKJV

3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.

Acts 1:11 NKJV

11 who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.”

Jesus could come back for His church at any moment - Are you ready?

4. The Penalty Vs. 27, 29-30

If we come in an unworthy manner we’re guilty of not discerning the value of the Lord’s body & blood.

the result of not taking the Lord’s Supper seriously can be sever physical affliction…

Weakness…          Sickness…          &        Even Death… 

5. The Profit Vs. 31-34

5.1 It Can Be Used to Judge Ourselves Vs. 31-32

You know it’s really easy to judge others…     I mean they’re so messed up, amen?… 

But we should judge ourselves…    we should evaluate our own actions & attitudes…

But if God judges us He will chasten us so we won’t be condemned like the world…

Hebrews 12:6 NKJV

6 For whom the Lord loves He chastens, And scourges every son whom He receives.”

5.2 It Can Be Used to Control Ourselves Vs. 33-34

We need to exercise self-control & wait for one another when we come to the Table of the Lord… 

Staying focused on Jesus and all He has done…     &     all He is going to do… 

I like what Pastor Clark says, “it’s not about coming to the Table of the Lord…  it’s about coming to the Lord of the Table”

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