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The Lord's Supper is the focal point of the worship of the church. There are several reasons the Lord's church observes this memorial feast each Sunday. Let us examine them briefly.
Under the Mosaical covenant, the children of Israel was commanded to observe the passover (feast of unleavened bread) in rememberance of their exodus from Egypt. In Exodus 12:24-27, we read,
"And ye shall observe this thing for an ordinance to thee and to thy sons for ever. And it shall come to pass, when ye be come to the land which the LORD will give you, according as he hath promised, that ye shall keep this service. And it shall come to pass, when your children shall say unto you, What mean ye by this service? That ye shall say, It is the sacrifice of the LORD's passover, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when he smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses. And the people bowed their head and worshipped."This memorial feast was a foreshadow of the new memorial feast instituted by Christ and was nailed to the cross.
Jesus instituted a new memorial feast (Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:19-20) to be observed by His church until He comes again. It is to commemorate His death, burial, and resurrection from the dead. The unleavened bread represents Christ's perfect, sinless body. The fruit of the vine, which is, literally grape juice, represents the blood of Christ that was shed upon the cross.
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? (1 Corinthians 10:16).
There are some principles that the Bible teaches about observing the Lord's Supper "in spirit and in truth," (John 4:24). First, only those who are christians are authorized to partake. Unless a person becomes a christian, he cannot call Jesus Lord and be able to partake of the Lord's Supper in a worthy manner.
Second, children are not permitted to partake of the Lord Supper. They do not completely understand the reason behind its observance. Parents should teach their children at home (Ephesians 6:4) about observing the Lord's Supper and prepare their minds before coming to worship.
Last, it is to be partaken only on the first day of the week. Some denominations observe once or twice a month, while others partake only once each year. In Acts 20:7, Luke says,
And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight.Also,
And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers, (Acts 2:42).
Considered a general practice under the realm of church autonomy and expediency (Romans 14) by many churches of Christ, but not a command found in scripture, the Lord's Supper is offered in the evening service only to those who missed the opportunity to partake that morning. It follows an Old Testament example found in Numbers 9:5-12. This passage shows that God understands the need for His people to partake of the memorial feast at a later time because of valid reasons (i.e. sickness and work) for missing the first opportunity.
Although it is not part of the Lord's Supper, each Christian is commanded to give to the Lord on the first day of the week. In 1 Corinthians 16:1-2, we read,
Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye. Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.Non-Christians are not bound to this command. However, they may give to the Lord if they so choose.
There are two important principles about giving. First, when we give it must be done with a sincere heart.
Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver, (2 Corinthians 9:7).
The other principle deals with deciding how much to give. We must set aside a portion of our income to Christ when we assemble with the saints (Hebrews 10:25) each Lord's day. For example, Ananias and Sapphira sold property and gave a portion of the money that was received to the apostles (Acts 5:1-11).
When we observe the Lord's Supper and give to the Lord on the first day of the week, it is important that we do so "in spirit and in truth," (John 4:24).
Ira Mikell
ira@thechristianexaminer.com
Many Christians today are blessed to live in the United States of America. This country has been religiously tolerant for its entire history, and has one of the highest standards of living in the world. We, as Christians, are able to go about our daily lives unimpeded from many of the troubles that beset others in different countries.
For all of its blessedness and freedoms, however, America also poses a stumbling block for Christians. Many of the ideals of American society are completely contrary to the ideals of the Christian. Let us look at how becoming too deeply imbued in American society will lead to great conflict with Christ:
But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.Therefore, the Christian in America must be on guard, forsaking the attitude of wealth and to aspire for what Paul urged Timothy to in verse 11:
But flee from these things, you man of God, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness.
And He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt: "Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: 'God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.' But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me, the sinner!' I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted."
So when He had washed their feet, and taken His garments and reclined at the table again, He said to them, "Do you know what I have done to you? You call Me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so I am. If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a slave is not greater than his master, nor is one who is sent greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.
These attitudes are unfortunately deeply-rooted into the American culture, and it is easy to fall prey to them. We, as Christians, must remain diligently on guard to follow Christ over the United States of America. In closing, we must remember that the poorest of Americans is more often than not richer than most people on other continents. Every Christian living in America would be wise to heed this advice from Paul to Timothy, 1 Timothy 6:17-19:
Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed.
Ethan R. Longhenry
ethan@thechristianexaminer.com
www.deusvitae.com
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