Dining With Christ

The table has been prepared, the Son has taken His place at the head, and it is you and I who have been invited to sit and dine and fellowship. As we look around the table we see one another…men and women, boys and girls loved by God, here by invitation. The Son, Jesus Christ, is prepared to receive us as guests and honor us as friends. He has prepared a feast before us.

Can you imagine such a scene? To be asked to eat with the King of Glory? Were He a physical king with a physical kingdom and you and I were invited to feast at his table, we would certainly prepare ourselves for the occasion. Our dress, our demeanor, our language and our disposition would all reflect great joy and honor toward the One who has invited us.

The title of today’s message is: “Dining With Christ”

Our Focal scripture is taken from: 1 Corinthians 10:16

1 Corinthians 10:16 NASB95

16 Is not the cup of blessing which we bless a sharing in the blood of Christ? Is not the bread which we break a sharing in the body of Christ?

God has indeed prepared a feast in honor of His Son. The Lord’s Supper is symbolic of that feast. I chose to draw your attention to the verse we read in 1 Corinthians for a couple of reasons. First, it is the only place in the Bible where the Lord’s Supper is referred to as communion.

The NKJV of the sacred scroll reads:

1 Corinthians 10:16 NKJV

16 The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?

But secondly, and more specifically, because I want you to understand what that word communion means in relation to the Lord’s Supper.

The word communion comes from the Greek word koinonia and it means partnership, participation, fellowship. In other words, it is the joining of two or more into one. That’s why Paul continued in 1 Corinthians 10:17 by saying,

1 Corinthians 10:17 NASB95

17 Since there is one bread, we who are many are one body; for we all partake of the one bread.

The word partakers comes from the same Greek word as communion.

Paul’s point was simply this – that in coming to the table, whether it be the Lord’s table or an idol’s table, we are joining ourselves to that which it represents. We become one with it and with those who partake of it with us. “We being many are one bread.” Jesus Christ is the Bread of Life, and in communion we commune, become one with one another and most importantly, with Him.

Now, while the Lord’s Supper was a new thing for the people of God, the idea of eating and drinking in His presence was not. For example, find Exodus 24:9-11 in your Bible. When the people of Israel were camped before Mt. Sinai, just after God had given the Ten Commandments, God called the leaders of Israel up to the mountain to meet with him.

Exodus 24:9–11 NASB95

9 Then Moses went up with Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, 10 and they saw the God of Israel; and under His feet there appeared to be a pavement of sapphire, as clear as the sky itself. 11 Yet He did not stretch out His hand against the nobles of the sons of Israel; and they saw God, and they ate and drank.

There’s a lot of interesting stuff in those few verses, but it is a fact that God invited these men into His presence where they dined with Him.

In addition to this, turn to Deuteronomy 14:22-23; 26. Every year the people of Israel were to give a tithe of all their crops.

Deuteronomy 14:22–23 NASB95

22 “You shall surely tithe all the produce from what you sow, which comes out of the field every year. 23 “You shall eat in the presence of the Lord your God, at the place where He chooses to establish His name, the tithe of your grain, your new wine, your oil, and the firstborn of your herd and your flock, so that you may learn to fear the Lord your God always.

and verse 26 reads

Deuteronomy 14:26 NASB95

26 “You may spend the money for whatever your heart desires: for oxen, or sheep, or wine, or strong drink, or whatever your heart desires; and there you shall eat in the presence of the Lord your God and rejoice, you and your household.

Again, there’s a lot there, but the point is that each year God’s people were commanded to come into His presence, wherever that might have been, and eat and drink before Him. But even earlier than that, God had put Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden and given them all of its abundance to eat (except the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil).

Since there was no sin in that situation, and since God had created them for fellowship with Himself and to glorify Himself, then every meal that Adam and Eve ate would have been a meal of feasting in the presence of the Lord. He created them for communion: for oneness with Him.

When this fellowship in God’s presence was broken by sin, God still allowed some meals, such as the tithe of fruits we read above, so the people would eat in His presence. These meals were a partial restoration of the fellowship with God that Adam and Eve enjoyed before the Fall. They were a picture of the communion God desires. But the fellowship of eating in the presence of the Lord that we find in the Lord’s Supper is far better.

The Old Testament sacrificial meals continually pointed to the fact that they were still looking for the Messiah. The Lord’s Supper, however, reminds us that Jesus’ payment for our sins has already been accomplished, so we now eat in the Lord’s presence with great rejoicing because now we truly can commune with God. Now the enmity that stood between us and God has been removed. Now the offense that kept us from being one with Him is gone and all that stands in our way is our own stubborn wills.

But even the Lord’s Supper looks forward to a more wonderful fellowship meal in God’s presence in the future, when the fellowship of Eden will be restored and there will be even greater joy, because those who eat in God’s presence will be forgiven sinners now confirmed in righteousness, never able to sin again.

The scripture repeat these words from Jesus that a future time of great rejoicing and eating in the presence of God is hinted at by Jesus when He said in Mark 14:25, “I tell you that I shall not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”

We are told more explicitly in Revelation 19:9 about the marriage supper of the Lamb: “And the angel said to me, Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” This too will be a time of great rejoicing in the presence of God, as well as a time of reverence and awe before Him.

From Genesis to Revelation, God’s aim has been to bring His people into fellowship with Himself: into communion.

And one of the great joys of experiencing that fellowship is the fact that we can eat and drink in the presence of the Lord. It would be healthy for our church today to recapture a more vivid sense of God’s presence at the table of the Lord. You see, when we partake of the Lord’s Supper, we do not just drink from a thimble and eat a wafer of bread and think reflective thoughts about Jesus. He is here! We are in the presence of the King. It is communion.

Jesus said in Matthew 18:20, “Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in their midst of them.” He is here today. Not literally in the bread or in the cup as some believe, but here, in our presence.

He is here, in those of us who believe.

He is here, dwelling among us collectively as a church.

He is here, communing with us.

We sit today in the presence of the King of Glory who suffered and died for you and me!

Knowing that the Lord’s Supper is the table of that King, we ought to consider some of The implications of such a feast.

1. The King decides who is invited – We somehow have a problem with this, but we shouldn’t. Jesus didn’t invite everyone to the upper room when He instituted the Lord’s Supper. The early churches didn’t invite everyone when they observed it. It was begun by Jesus as a church practice, taught as a church practice, and should continue to be a church practice. Because the Scripture teaches that the Lord’s Supper is a church ordinance, when we observe the Lord’s Supper we invite those who are members of our church to observe it, and we do so because we believe Jesus intended it to be that way.

When a Toastmasters club had its Christmas feast a couple of months ago, only those who were members of the club were invited. It wasn’t open to the public, nor was it open to everyone who claims to be a Toastmaster. Listen, there are times that we have those sorts of meals, but this was a special one open only to the members.

Other clubs practice the same thing and we don’t take offense at them for doing it. We shouldn’t take offense with the church for practicing the same thing. This is a special feast for our church to commune, to be one, both with one another and with Christ. We have many other meals where anyone is invited, but this one is a special time of communion for our church family and in no way says we think less of or don’t care about those who are not members of our church.

2. The King deserves honor – I believe we can honor Christ at His table in a number of ways.

a. We need to examine ourselves

– why are we sitting at the Lord’s Table?

-- Why have we come?

-- Are we in the right frame of mind?

-- Are our attitudes right?

-- Are our motives right?

-- Have I really trusted Christ to be my Savior?

-- Am I living in obedience to what I know His Word to teach?

-- Is Christ in you?

Consider this: today you are sitting at the Lord’s table. What does He see when He looks across the table to you? Does He look upon you as one of His children? Is He pleased with what He sees? Is He happy with what is in your heart? No matter if you and all the world are satisfied with your life. Is God? So, examine yourself.

b. Confess any known sin – is there sin in your life? Christ died on that old rugget cross to set you free from sin. He died to eradicate it from your life. He came to destroy its power over you. Are you holding on to it? Are you clinging to it? Look past the commonplace sins that you overcame years ago. Are you allowing Christ to free you from the sins of your tongue?

Have you confessed and repented of your anger?

Your resentment?

Your bitterness?

Your fear?

Your worry?

Your envy?

Have you repented for your lack of trust?

c. Surrender your life – God desires that we offer ourselves as living sacrifices to Him. Every redeemed person, every disciple of Christ must be a man or a woman consecrated to God, entirely separated to live for Him, for His will, for His work, and for His honor.

That’s what every disciple really wants. Communion is a marvelous union. Jesus offers Himself to us, and we offer ourselves to Him. Jesus gives Himself wholly for me, and I give myself wholly for Him. He yielded His life for ours, now we are to yield our lives for His.

d. Express gratitude – How do we honor our dinner host? We examine ourselves, confess any known sin, surrender your life, and express your gratitude for being there, and in this case, for the ability to be there. It is because of His sacrifice; because of His shed blood; because of His suffering; it’s because of His death, burial and resurrection, that we have communion. God forbid that we should ever forget it.

The Scripture teaches us that those who do not honor the Lord at His table do not discern the Lord’s body and eat and drink damnation to their own selves, to the end that some get sick and others even die because they take the Lord’s Supper lightly.

Hopefully you took time before today to prepare your hearts and minds, but just in case you didn’t, I want to give you that opportunity. It will seem like an eternity, but I want to give you a few minutes to think and to pray.

I want you to take these few moments to examine yourself and ask God to examine you. Confess any sin God shows you. Surrender your life to God in every way you know how, and express your thankfulness to Him. Would you bow your heads now and do that?

Allow for a few minutes of silence.

1 Corinthians 11:23–34 NASB95

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.” 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. 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 a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to 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. 30 For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep. 31 But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world. 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 will not come together for judgment. The remaining matters I will arrange when I come.

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