In Remembrance (Mark 14.23-25)

When I was in college, I had a professor who was a good Baptist preacher as well as a good teacher. He would often keep us spell bound with stories of his ministry throughout the years. One particular story that I remember to this day (and it has been a few years since I was in college) was one where he had decided to do something for those who felt uncomfortable with what to wear in church. See, there was a group of men who worked night shift at the local power plant and they did not have the time to go home, get some rest and then come to church “properly attired”. So, the professor, Dr. Harris, decided to do something about it. He arrived at church dressed in nice pants and a short sleeve dress shirt. No tie, no jacket. He wanted these men to feel comfortable coming to church as they could.

As he was going through the service, he noted that all the deacons (remember a Baptist church) were dressed in black suits with black ties. As the service continued it hit him like a ton of bricks: it was communion Sunday and in his preparing for the service he had completely forgotten about it. So, he asked us, what did he do? He said he went and served communion as he always did. This stuck with me because it told me that one need not always need to be solemn when serving or taking communion or the Lord’s Supper. One need to come to the table with the right kind of heart and with the right attitude to partake of the bread and wine or juice, as it may be.

What do we mean when we say that it is communion Sunday? Do we mean that we are going to partake the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper? Do we mean that we are going to something that will bring us into communion with our brothers and sisters throughout the world? Do we mean that we will be doing something that is tacked on to the end of the service that if the preacher goes long then we will have to endure a longer service? Or do we not really understand what is happening at the table where we are to serve and be served? So let us take a look at what the Lord’s Supper is not and what it is to us as those who partake of the elements.

The first thing to know what it is not is something that is tacked on to the end of the service once a month. The Lord’s Supper is one of two sacraments that Protestants agree upon, the other being baptism. There are some who celebrate it quarterly, some monthly (as we do) and some celebrate it weekly. It is part of our Book of Order that states how we should celebrate and why. Therefore, it is not an afterthought. In fact, the Book of Common Worship puts the Lord’s Supper as part of each service and assumes that it will be celebrated weekly.

The second thing that it is not is a magical moment. What I mean by this is that there is nothing that is magical about the elements of bread and wine. There are some who claim that the elements change when the right words are spoken. That they are still, to us, bread and wine but in reality, they become the body and blood of Christ. While this is a doctrine that is true (that Christ is present with the elements) there is nothing that changes them to the body and blood. When the words were once said in Latin (hoc est corpus, this is my body) what did the people who did not know Latin hear? Hocus pocus. Now you know where that term came from and why the people believed it was a magical moment.

Finally, for us in the Reformed faith, the Lord’s Supper is not just a memorial with symbolism in the elements. There are some who say that the whole supper is just a time to remember what Jesus did and that the bread and wine or juice are just symbols of what Christ gave to us at the Last Supper. The whole thing is based on faith. And while we are called to remember the Last supper, it is so much more than just a memorial, something that is in the past. It is something that takes place in the present.

This seems like a lot to understand and it can be. But there is a positive side to the Lord’s Supper. Let us continue by taking a look at what the Lord’s Supper is to all of us who celebrate it.

The Lord’s Supper is first of all a meal. Jesus gave us this sacrament at a meal, the last supper. Therefore, it is only fitting that we have a meal as well. Now this can be done is several ways. We can pass the bread and break off a piece or we can have the bread ready for consumption. The cup can be given in the glasses that we have, we can dip the bread by intinction or we can have a common cup where all those gathered have a sip during the meal. Right now, it is hard to do those things due to the pandemic, so, we have to make do with what we have. But in the end, we are still partaking of a meal.

This meal is one of thanksgiving where we give thanks to God for the gifts of creation and redemption. It is also a meal of communion. In this communion we have fellowship with one another, with others in the church universal and with Jesus himself. In Reformed theology we discuss the “real presence” of Christ. What this means is that coming to the table is not just a memorial in which we remember the death of Jesus with the symbols of bread and wine being his body and blood. Rather, it is a feast with Jesus as host in which we can encounter him here and now, in the present and not just in the past. It is here that we experience the bread of life by both feeding on and being fed by Jesus. John Calvin stated that this sacrament is, “…a spiritual banquet, wherein Christ attests himself to be the life-giving bread, upon which our souls feed unto true and blessed immortality” (Institutes 4.17.1). The one who promised us life and that we would never be hungry is the one who sits with us in this time of feasting and being in communion with each other. While Jesus is bodily present in heaven sitting at the right hand of the Father, he is present with us through the Holy Spirit. It is a mystery how this works and even Calvin states this by saying: …if anyone should ask me how this takes place, I shall not be ashamed to confess that it is a secret too lofty for either my mind to comprehend or my words to declare. And, to speak more plainly, I rather experience than understand it. Therefore, I here embrace without controversy the truth of God in which I may safely rest. He declares his flesh the food of my soul, his blood its drink [John 6:53 ff.]. I offer my soul to him to be fed with such food. In his Sacred Supper he bids me take, eat, and drink his body and blood under the symbols of bread and wine. I do not doubt that he himself truly presents them, and that I receive them.[1]

The Lord’s Supper is as well a meal of joy and hope in the power of the Spirit that gives us new life. The Spirit enables us to be present with Christ as he is the host of the meal. This meal is also an indication of the great banquet that will come at the end of time when the reconciling work of God is completed and we share with God and Jesus the great feast prepared for us.

Finally, the Lord’s Supper is a celebration. The Confession of 1967 says this: The Lord’s Supper is a celebration of the reconciliation of men with God and with one another, in which they joyfully eat and drink together at the table of their Savior… They rejoice in the foretaste of the kingdom which he will bring to consummation at his promised coming, and go out from the Lord’s Table with courage and hope for the service to which he has called them. When we remember what Jesus told us about the Lord’s Supper, we will realize it is a cause for celebration. When we celebrate the Lord’s Supper, we remember what Jesus did for us so that we, who could do nothing on our own to reconcile ourselves to God, would be reconciled to God. And in doing so should we not celebrate? Often when we have the Lord’s Supper, it is in a solemn, somber tone, more akin to a funeral than the celebration of the life and resurrection of Jesus. Howard Rice and James Huffstutler have written that if we could get past the “poor dead Jesus” mentality and realize the gratitude we have for what Jesus did, then our worship would change to one of celebrations. They even say that there might be dancing in the aisles of the Presbyterian churches!! That would be a celebration to see.

There has been a good deal of talk recently about the Lord’s Supper (or communion) and who should and should not be allowed to partake of the table. The teaching is that those who unworthily bring judgement upon themselves and therefore it is the church’s job to make sure that this does not occur. Presbyterians used to do this with examinations by the pastor and elders of all the church members and then giving out tokens to those who were deemed worthy. There is a problem here. When we do this, examine people, we take on the role of God. We deem who has repented and who will be able to partake. But in reality, none of us are worthy. If we wait until we are sinless, then none of us would be able to partake of the Lord’s Supper. Our Book of Order says this: “The opportunity to eat and drink with Christ is not a right bestowed upon the worthy, but a privilege given to the undeserving who come in faith, repentance, and love.” (Book of Order 2019-2021 pg. 96) Yes, we should examine ourselves and come to the table in a spirit of repentance but we should also come with a knowledge of God’s grace and mercy. The Supper is a means of grace that reminds of what Christ did for us. In the power of the Spirit God uses the Supper to build us up and make us able to do what we have been called to do in the solidarity of fellowship and service.

The Book of Order also states this: “Worshipers prepare themselves to celebrate the Lord’s Supper by putting their trust in Christ, confessing their sin, and seeking reconciliation with God and one another.” (Book of Order 2019-2021, 96) Let us join together and prepare for the meal that Christ gives us. There is a place for every one here at this table. Amen.

[1]Calvin, John. Institutes of the Christian Religion & 2. Ed. John T. McNeill. Trans. Ford Lewis Battles. Vol. 1. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011. Print. The Library of Christian Classics.