I Corinthians 11:17-34, Together in the Gospel

“Together in the Gospel”

I Corinthians 11:17-34 Rough Draft

Read the passage

Pray

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When a team is working in perfect unity - it is a thing of beauty.

When there is division and confusion - it all falls apart.

“Together in the Gospel”

Big Idea - The The unity of God’s people deeply effects the expression of the Gospel.

God’s church (us) being unified is critical to our mission.

The 1st thing we see in today’s passage is the opposite of unity.

Point 1, Verses 17-22, The Perversion of Community

A. Verse 17, “The better”, what is it supposed to look like.

What does it mean that that we (as God’s church) come together for the better?

-Think of a great family Thanksgiving get together. Where everyone is excited to see each other.

-You engage in relationships. No one sits off to the side with the look that says, Don’t talk to me.

-People are talking, sharing, catching up, thankful to be together, encouraging each other. The family does not get together for what each individual can out of it. They come together to connect with and encourage each other.

When God’s church comes together, we come for Edification.

We come to lift each other up. To help each other get better.

-You come to church not to just be a consumer and receive.

You come to church to be a producer - to give. PAUSE

-Before you come to church, Pray and ask the Lord, “Lord will you give me at least 1 person that I can speak to and encourage today."

Shameless plug for Sunday School.

Worship service we don’t interact. Sunday School has more interaction. It gives you more time for give and take in relationships.

-If you are not in a Sunday School class, would you consider joining one so you have more opportunity to be relational and effect someone else’s life?

AND - After worship service, would you not go straight to your car. Would you hang around in the grass outside and look for someone to speak to.

Just say, “Hey I was thinking about you, how’ your week been?, How have you been doing? How’s your family?”

-You say, that’s easy, I already do that...

After you talk, you say… we are going to get something to eat … would you like to come with us? Not this week, Ok. How about next Sunday?

When we gather on Sunday, it is not to just consume. It’s not just for me, it’s to edify, to build others up. To grow closer together spiritually.

Not so in the Corinthian church.

B. What really happened in Corinth (consumerism)

The church normally met in different people’s homes.

There were many different house churches all over the metropolitan city of Corinth that met.

This is super hard to imagine, but decades into the early church there was no church buildings. There was no sanctuary.

When you went to church you simply went to someone else’s home. Sunday worship happened in homes across the city.

In these house churches there would have been believing slaves, Christians who were poor, blue collar workers, professionals, and the very wealthy who did not work.

It is also likely that not all house churches were diverse.

How’s that?

In the poorer part of the city you may have churches made up of just poor. In that time in history, there isn’t much of a middle class.

In the rich area of the city your house churches may have just the wealthy and their believing slaves.

-There would naturally be social divisions in the city between rich and poor. These divisions would follow the people into the church.

-These social divisions, plus other church problems were completely perverting the camaraderie, love, community, and edification in the church.

-Why?

Relationship division in marriage breaks marriage.

Relationship division in families breaks families.

Relationship division in churches breaks churches.

Division perverts (it twists) the good relationships God intends.

Good relationships are so valuable in our lives.

Every person in this room needs to have a relationship with another Christ follower where that person, despite your brokenness, believes the best about you.

Despite your failures still loves you.

When you are a disappointment that person is still generous & gracious to you.

When you spiritually fall on your face that person still loves you.

And don’t you want to be that kind of person to someone else.

That’s the kind of friend I want and need in my life.

That’s who I need to be to others.

We just don’t need a friend like that. We need to be that friend.

That’s what God calls you to.

That wasn’t happening in the church in Corinth.

Division perverted community (their togetherness). Pause

The broken Lord’s Supper in Corinth

In Corinth all the house churches would meet on occasion to take the Lord’s Supper together.

Some historians think that they might have met at the large home of a wealthy friend of Paul’s named Gaius.

-I am going to give you my interpretation of how this might have looked.

-Because Gaius the home owner lived on the wealthy side of town the wealthy would arrive first.

-Remember there are no clocks, watches, cell phones to tell you the time. You had a basic feel for time and when to arrive. It wasn’t exact.

-These wealthy would help themselves to the nice dining room with the polished table.

-The wealthy would bring extra food and wine for others who were poor and didn’t have much.

-Here lies the beginning of the problem. They wouldn’t wait on others to arrive and for everyone to eat together.

-They would get tired of waiting, and begin.

-Remember, this wasn’t just a pot luck. This was the Lord’s Supper, a celebration of the Gospel together.

-They would wait on other parts of the church family.

-The extra food for the poor that is brought, a few decide to gorge themselves and eat that.

-The extra wine for the poor, someone drinks that up and gets drunk.

-A second group arrives at Gaius home, but there is not room in the dining room for them so they sit in the courtyard where extra tables are set up - away from the first group. Not together.

-This second group are really bothered the rich started without them, and that a few are even drunk.

-This second group waits for others to arrive, and then awkwardly begins eating together, eating a meal to celebrate Jesus while others have finished and the 2 drunk guys have gotten loud.

-There is knock at the door. It’s the large poor family from across town. They arrived late.

-All the food is eaten. They go hungry.

-The focus of this group meal was supposed to be Jesus.

-They were supposed to remember and celebrate what He did on the Cross.

-Because of all the divisions (broken relationships), Jesus is not the focus.

-Paul is mad and rebukes them.

Broken/Perverted relationships have ruin community.

-So, we all have to work hard at togetherness.

-It takes great humility and effort.

Transition - Paul brings the focus back from selfishness, back from consumerism, to Jesus.

Point 2, 23-25, The Pattern (order) the Lord’s Supper

Paul describes the original Lord's Supper as conducted by Jesus in the upper room.

Apparently the Corinthians forgot Paul’s instructions. So, he has to coach them in this again.

Read verses 23-25

1. What the Savior did (11:23, 25a)

He held up the bread & cup (11:23, 25a).

2. What the Savior said (11:24, 25b)

a. Concerning the bread (11:24): "This is my body, which is given for you."

b. Concerning the cup (11:25b): "This cup is the new covenant between God and you, sealed by the shedding of my blood."

A quick point, Throughout the New Testament we are given instructions on what should be part of Biblical worship:

Prayer, reading of God’s word, singing worship songs, preaching of God’s Word.

We don’t just come up with this on our own.

This is an example of how God 2000 years after Jesus walked the earth gives us instructions on how to celebrate the Lord’s Supper.

We not only see a simple Pattern to the Lord’s Supper, but we see The Purpose of the Lord’s Supper.

Point 3, 26, 28, The Purpose of the Lord’s Supper

Read verse 26 & 28

1. It serves as a backward look to the cross (11:26a).

-You see the greatest love of all found in God, in the greatest action of sacrifice.

-A personal sacrifice for YOU!

-So you worship your great loving fGod or suffering for your sin.

-If you do not know Him, Will you trust in Him? He is calling to you right now.

The Lord’s Supper serves as a backward look to the cross

2. It serves as a forward look to the crown (11:26b)

vs. 26, “... you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.”

-We look forward to see that He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. We see that He rules and reigns.

-The Christ Follower is not merely following a martyr.

-The Christ Follower is following an eternal King,

A king who rules over sin,

A King who rules over death.

A King who rules forever.

Have you given your life to follow Him?

He would have you right now.

3.Feeding of our core (soul)

Jesus through the Lord’s Supper intimately feeds you. He nourishes your soul.

John 6:32-35

32 Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34 “Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.” 35 Then Jesus declared, “I am the Bread of Life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” 

It is in the Lord’s Supper that there is a gracious feeding of our soul.

-In God’s great care for you He put in place a time where you would get a unique spiritual feeding. It would be found in celebrating the Gospel together in undivided community.

4. It serves as an inward look to the conscience (11:28).

Read verse 28

Illustration - Young little boy, Sunday Lords Supper, My parents had a rule. To take the Lord’s Supper you have to 1) Be a Christ Follower, 2) Be able to explain to me what it means. They wouldn’t tell me and then we would tell them back. They would tell me, let a week go by, and then ask me to see if I had held onto it.

-I was not taking Lord’s supper at this point in my life.

-The plate was passed down our isle my mom (who was the pastor’s wife) passes it on without taking it.

-I tried to ask her right away in front of everyone why she didn’t take any like she normally did.

-She gave me the signal, “not now”.

-I know now why she didn’t take it.

There was a sin issue in her life that she thought had not fully been dealt with.

-Maybe she had gotten in a fight with my dad that morning and things in her heart and mind were still brewing.

-Maybe there was an un-forgiveness toward someone in the church because an individual had treated by dad poorly.

-You know pastors wives are like that. If they found out you acted out against their husband (or said something not nice about their husband), they’ll get mad at you. You better watch out. If you wake up one morning and your car tires are slashed it might be the pastor’s wife.

Here is what my mom did. Instead of adding to her sin and taking the Lord’s supper in an unworthy manner, she let it pass.

-She chose to show honor to the body and blood of the Lord by not taking it.

-This is why we have a time for you to confess your sin before we take the elements.

Is it possible be aware of all your sins? No

Are there sins and sinful attitudes that we have that we are unaware of? Yes

-It is impossible to confessed all your sins. There are sins you don’t even know you do.

-God just asks you to confess to Him the sins you are aware of.

We come to a warning in our passage about sin that we hold back from confessing.

There is a penalty for neglecting to examine yourself.

Point 4, vs.26-30, The Penalty for neglecting your heart

Read vs. 26-30

vs. 27, What does it mean, “guilty of the body and blood of the Lord?” It simply means this, It is as if you were the one who spilled Jesus blood by actually pounding the nails in his hands and feet.

The passage goes on to say, this is why some get sick and die. You didn’t examine your heart before the Lord’s Supper. Pause

-There are 3 reasons people get sick.

1.Simple Brokenness

We live in a world broken by sin. Our bodies are breaking down. Genetics become corrupted. Virus’s get the best of us.

-Simple brokenness.

2.A trial - God allows or causes something difficult that challenge us to grow spiritually. To work out the bicep of faith.

Sometimes sickness is that trial.

3.Discipline - God correcting us for our sin.

Discipline drives us back to Him, and back to obedience.

I believe the pandemic is discipline. Something that God is using to drive us back to Him. Depend on Him, cry out to Him.

-Something that stings us that shows us our mortality and brings spiritual humility.

Taking the Lord’s Supper in an “unworthy manner” brings God’s discipline.

-Not considering the Cross, not confessing sin, not worshiping Him in your heart.

-Seeing the Lord’s Supper as an exercise, a habit … allowing it to become common, ordinary , just passing the time while taking the Lord’s Supper, allowing yourself to be overly distracted.

Point 4, 31-34, The Profit of the Lord’s Supper

(11:31-34) 1. It can be used for judging ourselves (11:31-32). 2. It can be used forgiving ourselves (11:33-34).

Time for personal examination

-God has given a time set aside in the life of the church

for you to examine yourself.

-Not the only time to examine yourself.

-Profit of slowing down getting right with God.

2.Vs. 33, Celebrate what Christ has done together.

-Be together in the Gospel.

The Gospel is being mocked in many places in our country. It is easy to feel alone in your faith.

-We come together in the Lord’s supper to be encouraged.

Closing?