Could turn with me to 1 Corinthians chapter 11 this morning. 1 Corinthians 11, we'll be reading verses 17 through 34. 1 Corinthians 11, verses 17 through 34. But in giving this instruction, I do not praise you, because you have come together not for the better, but for the worse. For in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that divisions exist among you, and in part I believe it. For there must also be factions among you, so that those who are approved may become evident among you. Therefore, when you meet together, it is not to eat the Lord's supper. For in your eating each one takes his own supper first, and one is hungry and another is drunk. What? Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you? And this I will not praise you. 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. 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. 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. For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. 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. But a man must examine himself. and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly. For this reason many among you are weak and sick and a number sleep. But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord, so that we will not be condemned along with the world. So then, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. If anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, so you will not come together for judgment. The remaining matters I will arrange when I come." Let's pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for A text that, in many ways, is very familiar to our church, one that we turn to often, usually at the beginning of each month as we celebrate the Lord's Supper together. I thank you that today we get the opportunity of studying this text as we've been working our way through 1 Corinthians. I pray you'd give us insight and clarity, that you give us softened hearts to receive the truth and plant it. Lord, I pray that you would correct us where we need that and encourage us where we're doing well. We pray this in Jesus name. Amen. You can be seated. Well, we did have a wonderful time at family camp this past weekend, and a good many of you were able to join us. Hopefully not too many here showed up here on Sunday morning and found us not here. If you did, I'm so sorry. It was because we were gone for family camp, but we are excited to be back this weekend. Part of what makes that event so very special in the life of our church is just being able to have this extended period of time together. We were reminded in particular by Pastor Christian's message as we talked through the weekend that the Christian life is meant to be lived in community. While we individually are responsible for God to repent of our sin and trust in Christ, no one else can do that for you. We do not hear the gospel apart from people sharing it, nor do we grow in Christlikeness apart from community. I was told about Jesus and came to believe in him myself mainly through my mom and dad's witness from a young age, but my growth and development as a Christian is largely due to a large number of people who have made investments in me over the course of my life. This past week, Pastor Christian and I actually got a chance to, as part of one of his seminary courses, I get to be a sort of instructor. I don't know. It's more of a come-along sider. But anyway, there we are together in a room, able to talk through some things together, and one of the exercises we got to do with one another was to just share about the influence of other godly men and women in our life and how we've gotten to the place that we are and the impact that they've had on us. It was good to be reminded of the long line of godly men and women who have made huge investment in both myself and Pastor Christian, bearing witness to the Lord Jesus Christ both in their words and by their deeds, both in their living and for those who have passed away in their dying. Now Christian pointed us this last weekend to Hebrews 12 and he explained that the reality of the command to run with endurance the race set before us is in the form of a hortatory subjunctive, which means we translate that phrase, the command there, let us. Let us run with endurance the race set before us. Note there, we are commanded to run. And we do this by collectively working together to lay aside encumbrances and entangling sin and fixing our eyes on Jesus. The work of endurance is a community project. We're working together by the grace that God provides. To obey a let us command, you have to be living in community to have an us to obey that alongside of. So we're working together by God's grace. to make this happen. So it makes sense that preceding Hebrews 12, we would find a passage like Hebrews 10, verses 24 and 25, where we're told, let us consider one another and stir up, stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another and all the more as you see the day drawing near. There we're told not to forsake our assembling together. Even if there are a great many others who neglect this responsibility and privilege, we must not forsake it. Regardless of the relative importance that this world places upon the saints gathering together for worship of our Lord and to encourage one another, we must not forget its crucial importance. Now, with that truth in mind, we realize that the words we find written here by Paul in 1 Corinthians 11, verse 17 and following must have arisen out of a particularly dreadful situation. Back in verse 2 of this same chapter, Paul was able to praise the Corinthians because they had remembered him in everything and they were holding firm to the traditions as Paul had delivered them to them. But here, in verse 17, Paul explains, in the instruction I'm about to deliver to you, I give you no praise. And what I'm about to talk to you about, I have no praise. He says, and then again in verse 22, look down at verse 22, Paul exclaims, what shall I say to you? Shall I praise you? In this, I will not praise you. Paul says, I don't have any words of affirmation here for you, only words of correction. There's no praise on my lips for you regarding this situation. In fact, the situation is so dire that Paul says, again look at verse 17, in giving this instruction, I do not praise you because you come together not for the better, but for the worse. Not for the better, but for the worse you come together. This statement highlights an important truth. As crucial as our gathering together is, community life must be rightly motivated and rightly lived out. In other words, said another way, it is possible for a people to gather even in, quote, quote, the name of Jesus, and it bring more harm than good. Consider the weightiness of what he's saying here. He's saying the way you are gathering is so bad, I wish you didn't. Now, how can the church fulfill the commands of the lettuces? How can we do the salad bar? How can we do lettuce? How can we do all the let us commands without being together? And meanwhile, he says, your gathering together is doing more harm than good. What he's talking about here must be something exceedingly bad. He points out the fact that it is possible for people to gather and even call themselves a church and yet bring more harm than good. For example, should biblical preaching be replaced with humanistic philosophy or self-help pop psychology or prosperity theology, we would all admit it would do the listeners more harm than it does them good. Should a church's gathering encourage selfishness and bitterness and resentment among the people so gathered? That gathering is not in the name of Jesus, even if they say they're gathering in the name of Jesus. Also, consider the entire ground of church discipline. It rests upon this idea that there's a recognition that if sin is left unchecked in a congregation, it can lead to the congregation's ruin. Remember, in this very letter, back in chapter 5 of 1 Corinthians, Paul said that if you have a situation of an unrepentant brother who will not repent after being approached about that sin, he says, delivers such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit might be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. Certainly among the motivations there might be the actual restoration of the believer, but as you read the rest of the context, it becomes evident that of supreme importance to Paul is the witness of the local church. He's concerned that the local church not become leavened by the influence, the yeast, of a sinning member who's unrepentant. He says, instead, remove the leaven so it doesn't leaven the whole lump. His concern there is that the gathering of the church would no longer be what it's there for if they don't take church discipline seriously. A church characterized by sin, if the church is known as just a group of sinners without any repentance whatsoever, The church will no longer be salt and light in a dark world. A church is no longer a church if its gathering is no longer for the supreme purpose of glorifying Christ. Remember the warning that was given to the church in Ephesus in Revelation 2.5. Remember the church in Ephesus in that first letter written to the, remember those letters written to the seven churches in Revelation? The first letter there in Revelation 2 written to Ephesus, the church was commended for several things but they were criticized for having left their first love. And then they're commanded this, remember from where you have fallen and repent and do the deeds that you did at first or else, here's the warning, or else I am coming to you and I will remove your lampstand out of its place unless you repent. Now, what does he mean by that? What does he mean, Ephesus, if you don't repent and return to your first love, I'm going to remove your lampstand. Well, in the vision that John was given in Revelation 1, we're told that he saw the Lord standing in the midst of seven golden lampstands. And at the end of that chapter, we're told that the seven lampstands stand in the place of the seven churches. So the threat here from Jesus to Ephesus was that its lampstand would be removed. In other words, this church would cease to be a church if it refused to repent and return to its first love. Now sadly, such a state of affairs exists in this world. There are many a gathering that might claim to be a church which is no longer actually a church because it's no longer a gathering of believers who assemble to worship God through reading, singing, praying, and preaching the gospel. While some assembly is required, not all assembly is for the better. We must not only assemble, but assemble in the Lord's name in accordance with the Lord's will. And how do we know his will? He gave us his word in obedience to the scriptures. So in a sermon entitled The Importance of Communion, we're going to learn that there are two ways in which we can gather There is a gathering for the worse and a gathering for the better. And I pray that we'll gather in the manner of the latter. Say that 10 times fast. I pray we will gather in the manner of the latter. All right. Let's first of all talk about a gathering for the worse, point one, a gathering for the worse. I want you to note three qualities with each of these gatherings which mark them as either worse or better. The gathering for the worst, number one, could be described as a fractured family. A fractured family. Look at verse 18. He says, he begins here, for first or indeed first. Now it is an interesting thing to note that you will never see in this text Paul say second or third or next. It's as if he gets to first and doesn't go any further. First and foremost, ever been there before? I've got five reasons why this is bad. First of all, and that's really what I have to say, is this first reason. That's really what I've got. I think what Paul is saying here is first and foremost, this is the indicator of the problem that's going on in the Corinthian gathering for church. There might be a deeper root which we'll look at in just a moment, but it's showing itself here as a fractured family. The Corinthian gathering was inherently flawed due to the tangible divisions that were present when they met together. Now, you'll recall that this is the same letter that we find in the very first chapter of 1 Corinthians. Paul's rebuke of the church for their schisms, their many divisions. Remember back in chapter 1, it was divisions regarding which teacher they showed allegiance to or identified more with, right? We're of Paul, we're of Apollos, we're of Cephas or Peter, right? We're of Jesus. You have all these groups within the church claiming a different leader that they're following. He's already addressed that division back in chapter 1. I don't think that's the division that he's talking about here. It's not the same sort of thing. This will become plainly evident in the following verses. There's a division happening in the church due to some sort of socioeconomic levels. Some sort of status that they're allowing to enter into the church. But whatever the reason for fractures in a church fellowship, it's always an issue that needs to be addressed swiftly. Notice that the reports that Paul received were almost too horrible to believe. And yet he says, some part of the complaint I must believe. It's as if Paul is saying here, I'm not going to be duped easily. Some of these reports might be a little overblown. But there's certainly an element of truth to what's being told me. These aren't coming out of nothing. They're not arising out of a void. He says, there must be some substance to the news that I've received. Some sort of division is wreaking havoc on the worship gatherings of God's people there in Corinth. In verse 19, though, Paul admits that even these issues might be a means by which God's people are really manifest. A person who is inherently just stuck on trying to cause divisions and schisms might just prove himself not to be one of the Lord's children at all. We do know there are wolves in sheep's clothing that would like nothing more than to cause divisions and disputes and dissensions within a church. So such a case could be going on as well. Paul saying here, it might be such that really the true colors of those who are God's people are shining here in the midst of such a situation. But even in the midst of these conflicts, God was at work manifesting those who were truly his, because those who were truly his would be the ones speaking truth in love and working towards common unity in Christ and the bond of peace because they're God's children. Well, it's only inevitable that a fractured family would lead to a selfish supper. A selfish supper. The heart of the problem is revealed in verses 20 through 22. Therefore, when you meet together, it is not to eat the Lord's supper. For in your eating, each one takes his own supper first. One is hungry, another is drunk. Look at what Paul says here. What? What? Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? Notice here, Paul's not denying that they're meeting. It's just that he's saying, you're not meeting for the reason for which you say you're meeting. They may have claimed to be meeting to eat the Lord's supper, but Paul says, no, you didn't. Yeah, you can say it with a lot more attitude than I just did. No, you didn't. The meal you were eating had none of the distinctives that would mark it as the Lord's. It was someone else's supper that you're eating. He's saying the supper you're eating is not the Lord's. As I thought about that for just a moment, I wonder if we're guilty of this sort of thing too often when it comes to celebrating Christmas. Do our mindsets center on celebrating the gift and wonder of Christ's incarnation? Or does that time of year show us to just merely be enslaved to selfish materialism? Is Christmas all about Christ for you? Or is Christmas all about getting gifts for you? Could that accusation be made the same way of us? That we might say we're celebrating Christmas, but we're really not. Verse 21, for in your eating one takes his own supper first, and while he becomes satiated, perhaps even drunk, another goes hungry. The church was probably participating in what Jude 12 calls a love feast. Church would gather to eat together and then as part of that feast would celebrate the Lord's Supper. It would be kind of like us having a Pop Providence meal and the Lord's Supper as part of that celebration being combined together. I wonder if still today if one of the reasons why so often churches do not celebrate it that way is because of what happened in Corinth. I wonder if even our tradition today of typically not having it in connection with a bigger meal is because of what was going on in Corinth. Paul could scarce believe what he hears is going on. Those presidents are not showing love towards one another. You couldn't call it a love feast. They weren't showing love for others. If the desire was to please yourself, then why gather together, Paul asks. Why not just eat and drink at home, if that's what you're after? but instead it appears that there's an unequal sharing that's going on when they're gathered as a community. How is this to honor Christ? To fit the situation to our own day, it'd be like us having a potluck, or I know we say, we're formal language, pot providence meal together, but then distinguishing who gets what and how much each person gets. And get this, if it was on the basis of your net worth, Those with more, guess what? You guys get to go through the line first. If you've tithed more than anyone else in the church, guess what? You get privileged seats in the meal. You go through first. You get the steaks. We'll leave a few crumbs of pizza crust for the poor. It's that kind of picture that's going on, where the rich are picking through the spread of food and leaving a few crumbs for the poorest, or perhaps even bringing their own food with them to feast upon while the poor had nothing to eat. The issue being addressed is not the fact that there's different wages or different networks within the church. He's not condemning that. Let me be clear here, the Bible does not support Marxist policies and the redistribution of wealth through government thievery. The problem was allowing those distinctions to divide the church along socioeconomic levels. rather than using joint resources as a congregation to provide a meal for everyone, a privileged few were feasting while those who didn't have much were starving. And Paul goes, this is not the Lord's Supper. This is no common meal. You're all doing your own thing and you don't care about those who have needs. In fact, Paul says in verse 34, if the matter is just that you're hungry, then eat at home first, he says. If you're going to be gluttonous, be gluttonous at home first. Show up later. Don't create a scene where you're gorging yourself in front of others who have nothing to eat. A selfish supper is antithetical to the Lord's Supper. It's not His table you're eating at if all you can do is think about yourself. which may indicate that the core problem was that they were eating, third quality here, a meaningless meal. A meaningless meal. The heart of this passage is found in the verses we often read on a Lord's Supper Sunday. Verses 23 through 33. Those verses may be among the verses most quoted in our church. I was kind of thinking about that for a moment. Just because of the tradition of our church of looking at this passage before we enjoy the Lord's Supper together monthly, this might be the most quoted passage in all the Bible that we look at. But one thing that we may seldom notice, because I usually start reading, right, in verse 23, And that's for good reason. But notice that the context in which verse 23 is given to us is in the midst of rebuke, starting in verse 17. The surrounding context is the church wasn't doing right regarding the Lord's Supper. This is one of those interesting providences, isn't it? That because the church in Corinth was sinful in this matter, in a sense, forced the Apostle's hand to pen out instructions that he'd already given to the church. They're already familiar with how the Lord's Supper was to be celebrated and enjoyed. But notice, he has to put pen to paper to correct this abuse within the church. And by God's providence, it's the reason why we have it today. The church today is still encouraged and edified by these words, but which were originally written as a rebuke to the church in Corinth. Notice that Paul indicates here there is a massive problem horizontally within the congregation. There's a massive lack of love for membership within the congregation. But notice because he gives the chunk of his time to talking about the meaning of the Lord's Supper, the implication here is it's because you've lost sight of what the Lord's Supper is all about. If you understood what the Lord's Supper was, you wouldn't treat one another this way. You see, this meaningless meal had caused them to be selfishly motivated, which had led further to a fractured community. The meal had lost its meaning. The church had lost sight of its vertical significance in relationship to Jesus, and therefore they behaved improperly horizontally towards their brothers and sisters in Christ. So both implicitly and explicitly, we can gather from these words how the gathering for the worse might be remedied, might be fixed, and made into point number two, a gathering for the better. A gathering for the better. Again, we'll look at three qualities, and you'll see these obviously in antithesis to the previous ones. The first thing that we could note about a gathering for the better is that instead of a fractured family, we find a fused family. In contrast with that fractured family, the church is to be fused together. Yes, we come in different sizes and shapes and different skin tones and backgrounds, different salaries, different homes, enjoying different hobbies, employed in different jobs, wearing different clothing, sharing different interests, but every blood-bought sinner Every one of us is a blood-bought sinner, and we have one and only Savior, Jesus Christ. And He that unites us is stronger than anything that might try to divide us. Nothing can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Neither tribulation, nor distress, nor persecution, nor famine, nor nakedness, nor peril, nor sword, neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing. See Romans 8. Paul implored in Ephesians 4 verses 1 through 6, I implore you as a prisoner of the Lord to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Notice, there is one body and one spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all, and through all, and in all. Paul makes that plea for the church to live in unity, there in Ephesians 4, following Ephesians chapters 1, 2, and 3, where he's clearly marked out the reason why we can live this way. Why do we live patiently towards one another? Why do we show love towards one another? Why do we work towards unity? Why do we try to preserve this? Why do we walk with humility and gentleness and patience and tolerance for one another? I'll tell you why it's found in the first three chapters of Ephesians. Because we were chosen before the foundation of the world. Because we were sealed with the Holy Spirit. Because we've been redeemed by Jesus' precious blood. Because by grace we've been saved through faith that not of ourselves, it's a gift of God. Because we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works. Because the middle wall of separation that used to divide us has been broken down between Jews and Gentiles. Because Christ dwells in our hearts through faith, causing us to be rooted and grounded in love. Because we were once strangers and aliens to the promises, but now we're fellow citizens and saints and part of God's household. You see, because we've been fused together, we are one family. And because we're family, we work through things together. We don't allow divisions to persist. Or as we're told in Colossians 2, we've been knit together in love through Him who made us alive together with Him, forgiving us of all our transgressions, and being held together by Christ, who as our head is supplying whatever is needed for the growth of His body. You see, the Lord's Supper is an expression of our unity in Christ. If that is absent, dear friends, we are not enjoying the Lord's Supper. The Lord's Supper is a tangible expression of our unity in Him. His table, this is so fascinating, isn't it? His table is one that is marvelously diverse, and yet united as nothing else is, right? People of different languages and backgrounds and heritages and interests and all the rest, and meanwhile, sitting at one table together. people from all walks of life brought together by their common Savior, reminded of the forgiveness that He alone provides and the unity that He alone affects. All other unities are tenuous and fleeting. Only unity that Christ makes unites us forever. Note, secondly, that this fused family then engages in a selfless supper rather than a selfish supper. It's a selfless supper. The elegant correction to the problem residing at the heart of the Corinthian supper, it's almost like we almost miss it because it just seems too simple. Please note this, Paul's like, your gathering is so reprehensible, I wish you didn't. And you wanna know what the solution is? Look down with me to verse 33. So then my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. I mean, whenever I read this text, I close with that verse. That's where I stop usually when I read this on a, Lord's Supper morning. And we might miss just the significance of that little small command. So then my brethren, when you come together to eat, would you just please wait for one another? Selfishness had so infested the celebration that when self becomes king, you can be certain that everyone else takes the back seat. When life's all about me, that I'm getting the best spot, I'm calling the best seat, I'm getting the best stuff, everybody else can pick up the crumbs. Here he says, here's the correction, guys. Wait for one another. Show deference to one another. You take the back seat. Let someone go in front of you. When our relationship with the Lord is corrected, our relationship with others becomes more important than ourselves. When our unity is properly in view, our view of ourselves is dramatically altered. We no longer seek our own, but the betterment of others. Philippians 2. Therefore, If there's any encouragement in Christ, if there's any consolation of love, if there's any fellowship of the Spirit, if there's any affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in Spirit, intent on one purpose. Listen to this next verse. Do nothing then from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind, regard one another as more important than yourselves. Take a back seat. Wait for one another. Do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but for the interests of others. It's like one of those moments where you're just like, is that really the command here? He's saying it's so bad, it's better you not meet. And what it boils down to is have good manners. Have you ever thought about manners? We might argue about what they are. My wife is laughing already. I hear her laughing. I know exactly what she's thinking right now. We'll talk some more later, sweetheart. But have you ever thought about manners and just the nature of them? We might argue sometimes about the particular expression of them, but the fact that they exist, or sometimes seemingly don't exist, You see, courtesy and kindness become scarce when self-love trumps everything. And when courtesy is lost, when good manners are not common, when kindness is canceled. I want to encourage us as a church. We live right now in a day in which it's seldom seen someone being kind. patient, forbearing, gentle, humble. And it's very easy to get wrapped up because our world right now is pressing everything that direction, right? Right, left and otherwise, everybody's just loud mouth and speak over everybody else and be rude. And that's how you assert yourself in this world. But think for just a moment. Could it be possible that in such an environment, we as Christians have a unique opportunity to show the difference that Christ makes? In other words, even with the loud mouth, arrogant braggart that's maybe at work with you, or next door neighbor, or a family member, let me encourage you, you keep showing Christian charity, being patient, Listening to their argument, even if they've cut you off 8,000 times, listening to them. Patiently waiting for the moment which you can share. Showing kindness, especially to those who don't deserve it. Let's just say it this way. If unmerited kindness, if manners are going to be shown in this world, where is it going to come from? The only place that's going to come in a place that hates manners, that does away with kindnesses, the only place that's going to arise is from a place that has a source other than this world. It's those who have experienced the love of someone where they've received an unmerited love and kindness that they didn't deserve. i.e. Christians. It is Christians who are uniquely have the resources and reasons to give kindness and courtesy and show manners within a world in which those things have vanished from the human landscape. Certainly, if this is to be shown outside of our walls, how dare we not show it within these walls. Wait for one another. There's the command. But how are we able to do this? Third reason. Third description of the gathering for the better. They're engaging in a meaningful meal. A meaningful meal. Paul indicates in verses 23-32 that the meaningless meal the Corinthians were engaged in needed to be corrected. What they had was not the Lord's Supper. For the Lord's Supper involved specific elements that remind God's people of what Christ had done on their behalf, which had forever changed their relationship to God and to one another. Look at verses 23-26. For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus, in the night he was betrayed, took bread. 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. 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. For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. This morning, for comparison's sake, I had Luke 22 read as well, which is Luke's rendering or account of the Lord's Supper. Notice that Paul picks up the setting in which Jesus provided and first commanded this ordinance. It was on the night in which Jesus was betrayed. See that in verse 23? That's what starts this off. In the night in which Jesus was betrayed. In Luke's account, You read Jesus' instruction regarding the Lord's Supper, and then immediately following that, the next words from Jesus' mouth are, one of you among me, among us, is my betrayer. Someone who sits here at this very table is going to betray me. Luke connects the betrayal with that event, and so does Paul. Paul says, on the night in which Jesus was betrayed, he gave this to us. What a thing to be reminded of. As Jesus is preparing his disciples for his departure, as he's readying himself to be a perpetratory sacrifice for sinners, he's being betrayed by one of his own. Man's sinful rebellion is being manifested in his most wretched sight. They're a sinful man, plotting the destruction of the Son of God. Meanwhile, Jesus, the Son of God, planning to give his life as a ransom for many. God's grace and mercy seen against the darkest backdrop of man's sin and rebellion. Notice the significance of the supper. Two elements, the bread, which symbolizes Jesus' body, and the cup, which symbolizes the new covenant in Jesus' blood. As often as we eat and drink, we do so in remembrance of Christ. Roman Catholics who believe in transubstantiation and that whole philosophical system that they've tried to attach to this, reading this text plainly, you get no shred of that at all here. Jesus is saying, do this in remembrance of me. It's a memorial. It's a recalling of what Christ has done. He's investing this with symbolic significance. Now, in the original setting, Jesus was celebrating the Passover with his disciples. Remember, the Last Supper was the Passover meal. And what Jesus is doing is he's imbuing the Passover symbols with even fuller significance and meaning. The Jews, for all these years, had celebrated the Passover as a remembrance of the exodus, of God's deliverance of them from slavery in Egypt. Now, Jesus says, those symbols which you've connected with God's deliverance, I'm now here to effect a greater deliverance. A true and better deliverance. I came to deliver sinners of every tribe, tongue, and nation from slavery to sin. I'm dying so that sinners might be forgiven and washed white as snow. I'm dying for them in their place. This is my body which is for you. The Lord's Supper is a proclamation of the Lord's death. Look at verse 26. It's after you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. It brings us to Calvary. It reminds us what God's justice required in order to rescue sinners. The debt must still be paid. And either you will pay the debt for your sin by going to hell, or you'll trust in Christ who paid the debt in your stead, who died in your place. Hebrews 2.17, therefore he had to be made like his brethren in all things, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. Propitiation, a wrath satisfaction, satisfying the wrath of God on account of those who would trust in him. 2 Corinthians 5.21, he made him, God made him Jesus, who knew no sin, to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteous of God in him. 1 John 4.10, and this is love, not that we love God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins, as Pastor Christian read earlier. Notice Jesus' body and Jesus' blood here is the new covenant. He says, this cup is the new covenant in my blood. It's to picture the new covenant This makes us think of Jeremiah 31, which I'll let you look up later if you so desire. Jeremiah 31, 31 and following. There's a description there that's being given because Israel had continually broken the old covenant and the yearning among God's people that that be corrected. And so we're told in Jeremiah 31 that God would one day bring a new covenant. And with the new covenant, forgiveness of sins would flow And God's law would be written on men's hearts. Jesus says that new covenant is in my blood. Also notice that we proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. So the Lord's Supper is also inherently a reminder that Jesus not only died and was buried, but that he rose again. For him to come back to us means that he's alive. He didn't stay in the grave. He rose from the dead. He ascended to the right hand of God the Father Almighty, where he's presently interceding for us, and he is coming again. He will return for his bride, the church. We celebrate the Lord's Supper, both looking back to what Christ has already accomplished, as well as looking forward to his glorious, triumphant return. And then look at verses 27 through 32. In light of all of that, we're provided here with a solemn morning. Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. Man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks eats and drinks judgment to himself. If he does not judge the body rightly, for this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep. But if we judge ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord, so that we will not be condemned along with the world. To correct the flippant manner in which the Corinthian congregation was approaching the Lord's Supper, Paul calls them to a careful examination. He says, unworthy approaches to the Lord's Supper makes one guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. There's been a lot of discussion regarding the phrase, judging the body rightly. What does that mean? The way I would understand it to mean would be along the lines of the way that Richard Hayes understands it. He says this in his commentary, by mistreating other members of the church, the Corinthians repeat the sort of sin that made the death of Christ necessary. They place themselves among those who were responsible for the crucifixion and not among those who by faith receive the fruit of it. In a sense here, their sins against the body, their sins against other Christians within the fellowship, is causing them to sin against Christ. The warning is akin to the warning that was given back in 1 Corinthians 8, 12, where we're told, and so by sinning against the brethren and wounding their conscience when they're weak, you sin against Christ. When you sin against a brother, you sin against Christ. And so the call here is to a rightful introspection. If a believer conducts a thorough investigation of his own soul, leading it to correction, then further correction by the Lord will not be required. It's like one of us coming home and finding one of our children to have done something wrong, but then after they're like, Dad, I just want to tell you, I'm sorry. This is what I've done to make reparations. I'm grounding myself for four weeks. I'm going to wash your car every day for the next four weeks. I'm going to, you know, okay, well, sounds like you've worked that thing out. I don't think I need to provide any further correction. By the way, kids, you can try that out, but make sure that the punishment is stronger than what you think that your parents would say. Otherwise, it won't quite work. But notice here, the point is this. God says, hey, if you do self-inspection, and you look at your own soul, and you go, hey, these are sins that need to be corrected. These are steps that need to be taken. Wonderful! Great! The Lord's like, I don't need to bring any further discipline, because you've self-disciplined yourself there. But notice, as it continues here, if we fail to do that, our loving Heavenly Father won't just leave us in our sin. He will bring correction. And in this particular text, we're told that even some are weak and sick and a number sleep. Now, by sleep, we know this word is indicating that some had even died as a result of their failure to exercise proper self-discipline. Oh, by the way, just a little quick piece of Greek trivia for you. I know you're always looking for that. The Greek word that sits behind that one, the noun form of the word sleep there is the English word for which we get the word cemetery. Cemetery literally means The sleeping place. The place of sleep. Notice that the word cemetery that we use in our culture today derives itself from a Christian understanding that death is not the end. That death is not the end. To fall asleep in the Lord. And I know that our typical language is to say something like, you know, when we don't want to say they died, we'll say they passed away. But really, probably better for us to say would be, they've fallen asleep. They've either fallen asleep in the Lord, and they're going to be in his presence then and be given a resurrection body in the new heavens and new earth, or they're awaiting final judgment in hell. No one just passes away into nothing. This is not the end. Now the purpose of these words is not to make Christians think, please make sure you hear me here, this is not to make Christians think that they have to be perfect in order to participate in the Lord's Supper. We forthrightly proclaim that our only hope is found in Jesus' blood and His righteousness, right? We wholly lean on Jesus' name. It's not by our righteousness that we can attend to the Lord's Supper. But the point that's being made here in this text is, it is right for us to take a self-examination and make sure that if there is unconfessed sin, that that is confessed before the Lord, that a relationship, one with another, is pure and right. We're still called to a self-examination of our hearts as we attend to the Lord's Supper, living out what should be our day-by-day practice of confessing sins before the Lord, thanking Him for the forgiveness that He's already granted us in Christ, and receiving grace to empower us to new obedience in the future. So notice, this is that combination of both joy and solemnity that ought to be met in the Lord's Supper. The supper should be joyful, but it should also be attended to with seriousness. After all, it's not our supper, but the Lord's Supper. It seems appropriate this morning, I was thinking about how to conclude this, it seemed appropriate to finish our service today by celebrating the very supper which this text instructs us on. I can think of no better application than to ask you right now to take a moment and examine yourself in light of the truth proclaimed here in 1 Corinthians 11. You'll often hear me say, We need to take four looks. Take an inward look, discerning if there is anything you ought to confess to the Lord before sitting at his table. Take an outward look, considering others before yourself, considering your relationship with others within this congregation as well as outside of it, making amends with others, forgiving others who have wronged you. Take a backward look. As you think about both the bread and the cup, Remember that we're proclaiming the Lord's death. We're remembering Calvary together. We're giving thanks to God for the precious body and blood of Jesus, the only means by which we can be declared righteous before God. And take a forward look. Remembering that our Lord and Savior rose triumphant from the grave, we proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. We'll participate in this ordinance only so long as he tarries. And by the way, when we use that word, Terry, we must not consider the time of waiting as a time of waste. Consider every moment another opportunity to share the gospel with those who are still in darkness. The Lord is not slack. He will bring everything to its conclusion precisely when He means to. In the meantime, He extends the offer of salvation to lost sinners. If they'll repent and turn to Christ, they'll be saved. In fact, that extends to even you in this room today. If you right now are still in your sins and have not believed in Christ, today you can repent. Right now you can turn to Christ and be saved. If you confess your sins before the Lord, trusting in Jesus' life, death, and resurrection, He'll save you. Call upon His name. And if you do, you can also join us at the Lord's table. Let's pray together. Heavenly Father, We thank you for the, just the providence that brings us to this morning and the opportunity to look at a text that we've heard many times, but given the further opportunity to study it in depth. Thank you for the truth that is contained herein. We recognize that we are also, just like the church in Corinth, in need of correction from you. We thank you that you provide us with a place to gather. We pray that our gathering would be for the better. Help us to live in harmony with one another, to speak truth and love to one another, to encourage and strengthen one another, to rebuke and receive rebuke when that is necessary. Lord, we pray that you would continue to transform us more and more into your image. We thank you for the Lord's Supper and the remembrance that it is for us. And we pray as we celebrate this at the conclusion here of our service, that you would be honored. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.