Communion with Gratitude

Introduction

Good morning and welcome everyone to this morning service. It is good to see you all this morning. And thank you for coming.

I want to open this mornings sermon with a verse in

1 Thessalonians 5:18 KJV 1900

In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

As we are in this Holiday season of Thanksgiving, we are encouraged by the Apostle Paul to give thanks in everything.

And why do we do this?... because it is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning us.

That’s a pretty straight forward admonition, but I wonder today how much we really “give thanks in everything”.

Are we called to give thanks in “some things” or to give thanks in a “few things”?

Are we to choose those things that we “want” to be thankful for?

Do you think that it would be a Christian virtue to give thanks on those things only that we wish to be thankful for?

That would not be a real test of Christian faith, because even a sinner without Christ can do that.

Referring to this verse here in 1 Thessalonians, The Wesleyan Bible Commentary says, that “Paul means precisely what he says, that the believer, because he possesses life divine, can and should rise to the sublime height of thankfulness in every circumstance of life”.

And today this is the word of advice for all saints, to give thanks in all things.

Let us pray

Prayer

For Thursday night Bible study, I opened with the phrase, “Being Thankful is more than just an emotion”.

And as i was thinking again about this, I was reminded of last weeks Sunday School where sister Colisa pointed out that the “energy” in love is all about action.

This is so true and I appreciate that observation because this is something that we can apply to just about every attribute of the Christians life.

As I think about the fact that being thankful is more than an emotion,“it is a action”, I am personally convicted of those times in which I didn’t express thankfulness in my actions.

Thankfulness is an action and as people who belong to Christ, we should display our thankfulness to our Lord and Savior Jesus and to other people around us.

We should show it by being thankful in this world through our everyday interactions with others.

When the world sees this, they will see the love of Christ.

The title of this mornings sermon is..

Communion with Gratitude

I remember the Thanksgiving day celebration in my home when I was a child. All of us kids would be outside or in the basement playing and doing kid things and the whole time I could smell the food being prepared.

Mom is one of those people who always went all out and put her all into making a dinner, especially on holiday’s. And we would have all the typical Thanksgiving day foods. But I always loved the smells that came from the kitchen.

The turkey and the pie and all the trimmings. But although I was wanting to enjoy the food. I was not allowed until it was ready to eat. Mom would set every plate and have all the drinks on the table and all the food in the middle of the table and it was a wonderful time.

but after it was all ready I remember hearing the words “come and eat” or “It’s ready” and everyone who rush into the dinning room to eat.

But thinking back on this and reflecting on it, It was those words that brought us to the table. “Come and eat”, “The foods ready” and today I am thankful for those words because they are filled with invitation.

Everyone was anticipating the dinner, with the hunger and the smells and the excitement and to get the invitation was a great thing. It was a time to be thankful.

Looking back across the years of history, we can look at those who celebrated the first Thanksgiving and see thankfulness in action. The Pilgrims.

The Pilgrims' Journey

The Voyage: When the Pilgrims sailed to America from England, they were seeking mainly religious freedom. There was the idea of economic opportunities and a better life for their families also. and so in 1620. they made way for the new land.

Their voyage over here was all but easy. They had 102 people crammed into a small ship. It was very unsanitary and many of them got sick to make things worse. There were also storms that almost sank the ship. By the time they landed in Massachusetts, they lost three passengers one of which was a baby born on the ship.

The Harsh Winter: When they arrived, things just got worse for them. It was in the dead of winter and the temperatures were brutal.

They built crude shelters that offered little protection from the cold and wet, and food supplies were scarce. Diseases like scurvy and pneumonia ravaged the colony, claiming the lives of nearly half of the settlers. By the time they got through the winter there were only 45 settlers left.

The Wampanoag: In the spring, the Pilgrims encountered the a Native American tribe. and became friends with them. One of them named Squanto spoke English and taught the pilgrims survival skills.

III. The First Thanksgiving

A Harvest Celebration: The action that the first settlers took was to have a celebration with those who taught them to survive in this new world.

On the first Thanksgiving, the Pilgrims prepared a time of celebration and the Indians were invited to come to the table. And so they gathered to give thanks for the harvest.

But this meal wasn’t just about food—it was a time of gratitude, a celebration of the relationships they made with the Indians and the skills they were taught, that had helped them survive.

It was a meal shared with friends, a moment of fellowship and thanksgiving. This thankfulness in action.

If we rewind history a few thousand years, i am seeing another meal that took place. The meal that we find in the Gospel accounts of Matthew, Mark, and Luke and in 1 Corinthians.

Today we are going to be referencing the 1 Corinthians account to the Lord’s Last Supper.

Before we look at this passage, i want to point out a difference between the ancient world compared to ours today.

They were more social.

They didn’t have social media but they actually came together to socialize.

They would come together for meals and other needs because of the strong sense of community that was the norm.

The meals were often shared among extended families, neighbors, and even strangers.

But eating together was not just about nourishment; it was a time of fellowship and a time of connection.

Hospitality and socialization were deep values in the ancient world.

The Romans called these meals eranos. They were meals where everyone would bring their own share of food, and then all the contributions would be put together to create a meal to share.

In the early Church this meal time was called the Agape Feast or Love Feast.

You may think of this more like the potluck dinner except that it was every Sunday.

And this is where we break in to the text and see the Apostle Paul addressing a problem. In 1 Corinthians 11:17-22 we see him mentioning what is going on.

Lets read this passage...

1 Corinthians 11:17–22 CSB

Now in giving this instruction I do not praise you, since you come together not for the better but for the worse. For to begin with, I hear that when you come together as a church there are divisions among you, and in part I believe it. Indeed, it is necessary that there be factions among you, so that those who are approved may be recognized among you. When you come together, then, it is not to eat the Lord’s Supper. For at the meal, each one eats his own supper. So one person is hungry while another gets drunk! Don’t you have homes in which to eat and drink? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What should I say to you? Should I praise you? I do not praise you in this matter!

You can kind of get the feel for what is going on with the church in this reading.

But simply put is that the Corinthian church had taken the “love feast”, this time that was supposed to be Christian fellowship in remembering Christ death and resurrection and they were turning it into a time of selfish indulgence and division.

The church of Corinth was much like our churches today. It was made up of people who were from differentincome levels. They had rich and poor, those with plenty and those with little But, there was a dividing line between them that was a cause of division.

The church was dealing with several levels of division.

In 1 Corinthians 1:12 we see that there was divisions over being loyal to the leaders of the church. Picking and choosing who to follow as if they were following man instead of Christ.

1 Corinthians 1:12 KJV 1900

Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.

Basically there were divisional “clicks” in the church.

Even today in many churches we see this type of thing happening.

Church is supposed to be a place where the dividing walls that we seen in the world are broken down, but sadly there are many causes of division in the modern church.

But in Corinth, Some people would come early, get their fill and there wouldn’t be any left for the rest.

They weren’t concerned with the fact that the soul purpose of the meals was to testify Christ through Christian love and fellowship.

Paul tells those people who were eating everything and drinking everything that they “despise the Church of God and humiliate those who have nothing.”

That is pretty harsh, but this was the context under which Paul wrote this passage.

He was addressing the disunity of believers in the church. And this disunity was extending into the sacred time of remembrance.

But where does this type of disunity come from? I believe one place that this comes from is a attitude of ungratefulness.

There was a lack of reverence for Christ and the unity that He called the church into and the lack of thankfulness for the sacrifice that Christ made on the cross.

Instead of remembering why they were having the supper, they only wanted to satisfy self and this desire for self was causing division.

This reminds me of a church service that forgets the reason for the service.

Instead of a time of worship and appreciation, many times the services are marked by self indulgence and fun.

It seems that the idea of true worship and Christian fellowship in the name of Christ is scarce in many of the modern churches today.

The Biblical concept of Christian worship is based on thankfulness and is displayed in fellowship, community and sharing life together in the name of Christ.

In Psalm 100:4, the Psalmist proclaims,..

Psalm 100:4 CSB

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and bless his name.

Being thankful is part of the very act of entering into God's presence. We are to worship with thankfulness.

In the book of Acts 2:42-47 we see the early church living out this thankful worship.

Acts 2:42–47 (KJV 1900)

And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.

And all that believed were together, and had all things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.

And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

But today as we come to the table of communion, I want us to reflect on what it means to be a church that is truly thankful. Think about the church in the book of Acts.

Think about the fact that being a Christian is not just about our personal gain, it is about being part of the body of Christ. Having reverence for Christ and respect for other believers.

We don’t want dividing walls separating any of us.

In the book of Ephesians chapter 4:4-6 we read,

Ephesians 4:4–6 (CSB)

There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope at your calling— one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all.

As we worship, as we learn and grow, as we fellowship and partake of the communion, we do it as one body, unified under Christ.

Together we are thankful for what Christ has done for us and this is the driving force behind the Christian life.

That Jesus went to the cross, was crucified and rose again for the sinner. That is why we are thankful and this is what unites us together.

But as we are going to be taking communion today. I want to mention some thoughts on communion as this church defines it.

Since we have been going through some doctrines of our church, i thought that it would be fitting to talk about this.

Communion beliefs

. Communion is the chief “means of grace”

. Communion is one of the primary "means of grace" — that is, one of the channels through which God imparts grace to believers.

. There is a bit of a mystery to communion but, we understand that the sacrament is a symbolic act, but a powerful occasion for receiving God's grace.

. It is not just a ritual, but a sacred opportunity for believers to receive strength and renewal of faith,.. to grow in holiness, and to experience God’s presence in a transformative way.

. Communion involves the real spiritual presence of Christ

. The bread and wine remain unchanged in their substance but we encounter the living Christ during the Communion. The connection to Christ is through the Holy Spirit.

.Communion is a invitation to all

. Communion is an open invitation to all people who sincerely sought Christ and know Him, regardless of denomination or church affiliation. All are invited to come and receive the sacrament.

The table is open to all who love the Lord and desire to live in a manner worthy of that calling.

. Also, Communion is an invitation to everyone who seeks a relationship with Christ.

IF you are at that moment in life where Christ has called you out of the world an into His kingdom, Then you can receive Him today and partake of the communion.

Going back to my illustration about Thanksgiving day food when mom and dad would call us to the table. It is in this same way that the Lord calls all His children to the table of communion.

This is where we receive from Christ, this is a place of spiritual nourishment and so He invites us all to “come to the table”.

As Christians, we are called to be thankful for all things..the physical things, the blessings, friendships and most of all, we are to be thankful for the spiritual blessings of Christ’s death and resurrection, through which we are united together as one body,...the church.

A concluding passage of scripture then we will take communion.

Colossians 3:15–17 (CSB)

And let the peace of Christ, to which you were also called in one body, rule your hearts. And be thankful.

Let the word of Christ dwell richly among you, in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another through psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.

And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Amen.