The Lord's Supper - May 28, 2023

The Lord's Supper May 28, 2023 WELCOME ANNOUNCEMENTS OFFERING This morning, we will be observing one of the two ordinances of the Church. One is baptism, and the other is the Lord's Supper. This morning, we are observing the Lord's Supper. An ordinance is something that is done out of obedience to the Lord. In this case, these ordinances cannot be observed by just anyone, rather they are observed only by Christians, or Christ followers. In fact, Paul, an Apostle of Jesus said it this way in his first letter to the church in Corinth (1 Cor. 11:27-30): 27 WHOEVER, THEREFORE, EATS THE BREAD OR DRINKS THE CUP OF THE LORD IN AN UNWORTHY MANNER WILL BE GUILTY CONCERNING THE BODY AND BLOOD OF THE LORD. 28 LET A PERSON EXAMINE HIMSELF, THEN, AND SO EAT OF THE BREAD AND DRINK OF THE CUP. 29 FOR ANYONE WHO EATS AND DRINKS WITHOUT DISCERNING THE BODY EATS AND DRINKS JUDGMENT ON HIMSELF. 30 THAT IS WHY MANY OF YOU ARE WEAK AND ILL, AND SOME HAVE DIED. So, what does this mean? This means that if you are not a believer, or a believer that is unrepentant - which means that you have unconfessed sin and you have not turned from that sin - you should not take the bread and cup when we take them later this morning. However, we invite you to participate in all other elements of our worship service, and our prayer is that your heart is changed, and you become part of this family of God. What's really interesting is that it was Jesus Himself who instituted this meal. We will read a little bit later that we observe this in remembrance of Jesus, and we do this until He returns. Really what we see here is that Jesus commanded we remember His death. But, if you are at all familiar with the Gospel message of Jesus Christ, the death is only one part of this message. This is why I want to draw your attention to chapter 15 of 1 Corinthians to explore this further. In verses 3-8, we read: 3 FOR I DELIVERED TO YOU AS OF FIRST IMPORTANCE WHAT I ALSO RECEIVED: THAT CHRIST DIED FOR OUR SINS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE SCRIPTURES, 4 THAT HE WAS BURIED, THAT HE WAS RAISED ON THE THIRD DAY IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE SCRIPTURES, 5 AND THAT HE APPEARED TO CEPHAS, THEN TO THE TWELVE. 6 THEN HE APPEARED TO MORE THAN FIVE HUNDRED BROTHERS AT ONE TIME, MOST OF WHOM ARE STILL ALIVE, THOUGH SOME HAVE FALLEN ASLEEP. 7 THEN HE APPEARED TO JAMES, THEN TO ALL THE APOSTLES. 8 LAST OF ALL, AS TO ONE UNTIMELY BORN, HE APPEARED ALSO TO ME This is probably the clearest and most concise declaration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the New Testament. A few things that are worth noting. First, Paul says this is the message of all messages. It is primary. It is of most importance. Why? Well, if we are commanded to remember the Lord's death until He returns, then that requires an understanding of the full message of the Gospel. Gospel, by the way, means "good news," and it refers to the story of redemption from the Old Testament to the New Testament. Paul uses two primary sources in his recount of the Gospel. First are the Scriptures, the Bible. Second are the eyewitness accounts. The Bible, of course, is of upmost importance to us today, because that is our primary source of our faith. Paul, when writing to a young pastor, he wrote that all Scripture is breathed out by God. The writer to the Hebrew church says that the Word of God is living and powerful. Paul wrote to the Roman churches that faith comes by hearing the Word. The Bible is essential to the believer. Paul says in our passage this morning, that the written testimony reveals that Christ died for our sins, that He died and was buried, and that he rose on the third day. But, most of all the Bible teaches us that we are in need of a Savior because we were born into sin, and in that sin we are separated from a Holy God. The only way to be in fellowship with a Holy God is to be forgiven and declared righteous before Him. The Bible teaches us that is only possible through Christ. Let's quickly talk about what more the Bible teaches. One Bible prophecy expert maps out 125 fulfilled Old Testament prophecies concerning Jesus's First Coming, which includes His birth, life, death, burial, and resurrection. Others have that number between 200-400 prophecies concerning Jesus. One mathematician calculated that for one man to fulfill even 48 of those prophecies would have a one in 10 to the 157th power chance. That's 10 with 157 zeros behind it. This is just the written account. Consider Paul's second point, that these witnesses could testify to the resurrection of Jesus. Paul says that Jesus, after the resurrection appeared to many, individually and even as many as 500 at once. That in itself is incredible but note that Paul says many were still alive when this letter was written, which was probably between 50-55 AD - about 20 years after the death of Jesus. Think about the power of an eyewitness. I'm not old enough to remember Watergate firsthand but know of it from historical accounts. Charles Colson, who was the Special Council to President Nixon at the time of the scandal, was indicted for his role, and later became a Christian said this of the resurrection: "I know the resurrection is a fact, and Watergate proved it to me. How? Because 12 men testified they had seen Jesus raised from the dead, then they proclaimed that truth for 40 years, never once denying it. Every one was beaten, tortured, stoned and put in prison. They would not have endured that if it weren't true. Watergate embroiled 12 of the most powerful men in the world-and they couldn't keep a lie for three weeks. You're telling me 12 apostles could keep a lie for 40 years? Absolutely impossible." I share this message this morning as we prepare our hearts for worship and the partaking of the Lord's Supper because without the resurrection and the written testimony from the eyewitnesses, there is no second coming of Christ, there is no church, there is no remembrance. So, as we partake of the elements today, remember what we read in verses 3-4: 3 FOR I DELIVERED TO YOU AS OF FIRST IMPORTANCE WHAT I ALSO RECEIVED: THAT CHRIST DIED FOR OUR SINS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE SCRIPTURES, 4 THAT HE WAS BURIED, THAT HE WAS RAISED ON THE THIRD DAY IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE SCRIPTURES, We're going to spend some time in worship through song in just a few moments. In the bible, music and song were a significant and essential part of the gathering of the saints. Many times, these songs were recited as prayers to the Lord. Let these songs be your prayers of praise, thanksgiving confession and of repentance this morning and prepare your hearts for the ordinance of the Lord's Supper. NOTHING BUT THE BLOOD (HYMN) [F] AT THE CROSS (LOVE RAN RED) [F] IN CHRIST ALONE [F] Distribution of the elements. Taking and partaking of the bread: 1 Corinthians 11:23-24 23 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, 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." O THE BLOOD [G] Taking and partaking of the cup: 1 Corinthians 11:25-26 25 IN THE SAME WAY ALSO HE 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." 26 FOR AS OFTEN AS YOU EAT THIS BREAD AND DRINK THE CUP, YOU PROCLAIM THE LORD'S DEATH UNTIL HE COMES. AGNUS DEI [A] Closing Prayer