And please bow with me as we ask God's blessing upon his word. Lord, you've given a good word for us this morning that brings together so many threads, Old and New Testament, both sacraments. We pray that you would help us as we meditate on these things. Give us clarity to understand all of these things as they're brought together in Christ and what it means for us. Lord, we do love you and praise you in Jesus name. Amen. Again, it's a glorious privilege to be with you today as we get to partake of all the ordinary means of grace. And we've mentioned multiple times that these ordinary means of grace are the word of God preached as God speaks to us through the preached word. God speaks to us through the visible sermons that he's given in baptism and the Lord's supper. and we've been given the ordinary means of grace of corporate prayer. It might be appropriate to define what a sacrament is, and our confession very helpfully does that in chapter 27, paragraph one. Sacraments are holy signs and seals of the covenant of grace, immediately instituted by God to represent Christ and his benefits, and to confirm our interest in him, as also to put a visible difference between those that belong unto the church and the rest of the world. and solemnly to engage them to the service of God in Christ, according to his word." That is central to this passage, understanding sacraments and sacraments, Old and New Testament. And it's central because these are not totally separate things that have nothing to do with each other. But in fact, at the core, they have the same substance. That's exactly what this passage is harping on. that all sacraments through all of time with all of God's people have had the substance of the grace of Christ. And Paul begins expressing that he does not want us to be unaware of these things. He does not want us to be ignorant of these things, but he wants us to understand this connection because it's very fruitful for us to understand this connection. I have for you In the outline, you have in your insert, the truth taught, God has always given sacraments to his people to minister the grace of Christ to them. An emphasis on the word always, especially for our purpose here this morning. And then there are three points that I want to bring to our attention. First is the continuity of the substance of the sacraments. Second is the continuity of the threats to idolaters. And third, is particularly our communion with Christ. And especially when you look at that last paragraph and look at the participation language, the cup that we bless, it's participation in the blood of Christ, the bread that we bless, it's participation in the body of Christ. So Lord willing, this is what we will meditate upon and come to a greater understanding of this morning. So let's begin looking at the continuity of the substance of the sacraments, which is very clearly detailed in verses one through four. He says, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they drank from the spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ. Note, there are two kinds of sacraments referred to in this passage, and those two kinds correspond directly to our sacraments in the New Testament. There are kinds of baptisms that are referred to. And there is a eating and drinking that is referred to. Our fathers did this. And keep in mind, Paul is not speaking to an exclusively Jewish audience. He's speaking to a mixed people of Jew and Gentiles and says, our fathers did this. They were baptized into Moses and they ate the same spiritual food and the same spiritual drink. So let's begin with the language of baptism. What can we understand from this baptism that's referred to, and particularly the passing through the Red Sea? Well, remember when we read through the words in the Book of Order on baptism, one of the things that emphasizes is that in baptism we are marked as gods and we belong to Him in distinction from those who are not marked by baptism and do not belong to Him. I think that fundamentally is one of the most clear things that happened at the Red Sea. God's people passed through the waters. Pharaoh and his armies did not. They did not come out the other side. There was a distinction made between who belonged to God, who was his, and who was not. And God's people were preserved. and God's enemies were destroyed. This is not the only time this theme is used of in reference to baptism. In 1 Peter 3, we have the reference to the flood. 1 Peter 3, verses 20 through 21, because they formerly did not obey when God's patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared in which a few, that was eight persons, were brought safely through water. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body, but as an appeal to God for a good conscience through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The same theme is present. God's people are marked and brought safely through the waters. God's enemies are not, and they are utterly destroyed. Both of these Old Testament baptisms speak to the same reality. And we also cannot miss, it's hard to even separate these two, but the waters have a judgment quality that is salvation for those who belong to God and wrath and damnation on those who do not belong to God. And that's true in all of these instances that we've listed so far. It was true in the Red Sea. The Jews were saved through it and the Egyptians were destroyed. In the flood, Noah and his family were saved and the rest of the world was judged and destroyed. And in our baptism, it's the same thing. The waters pass over us and by faith we live. We come up from the waters of baptism safe, cleansed. And the image from the Old Testament shows that those who do not embrace Christ as Lord will not come up safely from the waters of judgment, but will in fact find themselves judged. So we find a strong continuity in the message of these baptisms. Let's consider the eating of the same spiritual food and the same spiritual drink. Thinking of food, Paul says that our fathers ate the same spiritual food and the same spiritual drink And he references Exodus. He references the wilderness wanderings. Jesus speaks of this and adds to the direction to the substance of what was going on here. Jesus says in John 6, same language, our fathers, our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness. As it is written, he gave them bread from heaven to eat. Jesus said to them, truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven. but my father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. They said to him, sir, give us this bread always. And Jesus said, I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me shall not hunger and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. Jesus says, yeah, they ate physical bread in the wilderness, but there was something bigger going on than that. Something much bigger going on than a physical sustenance. What was going on is that there was a sermon being preached. And that if you, by faith, press into God, you will be spiritually sustained. You will be spiritually nourished. That's what Paul's picking up on. That's what Jesus says explicitly. That this is not just about bread, but it's about the true bread, the bread of life. When we consider the drink, we've commented on this in multiple weeks now. But it's so wonderful, the Old Testament image of Christ in Exodus 17, when we think about the drink and the rock, where the Lord says in Exodus 17, I will stand on the rock. Moses, you shall strike the rock with your staff. And remember, this staff represented the wrath of God poured out on the Egyptians. That staff was central to the working of the plagues in all of those instances. And so what you have here is an Old Testament sermon that the wrath of God strikes God, and out of God comes life-sustaining fluid, liquid, water. And God's people are saved, nourished, and sustained. The cumulative teaching of Scripture is that the Hebrews ate and drank of Christ as they partook in what Christ provided for them physically in the wilderness. Now that is a controversial statement for many of us in the evangelical Protestant world today. But this is the teaching of scripture, that the Jews were not a fundamentally different people with a fundamentally, substantially different system that preached different things. It was the church under age, given sacraments appropriate to them at that time that had the same substance that our sacraments have for us. Repent and believe, and you will be saved. Trust the Messiah, and you will be saved. Westminster Confession of Faith, Chapter 8, Paragraph 6 says, Although the work of redemption was not actually wrought by Christ till after His incarnation, yet the virtue efficacy and benefits thereof were communicated unto the elect in all ages successively from the beginning of the world, in and by those promises, types, sacrifices wherein he was revealed and signified to be the seed of the woman which should bruise the serpent's head, and the lamb slain from the beginning of the world being yesterday to day the same and forever." And even more pointed is the chapter on sacraments, chapter 27, paragraph five, the sacraments of the Old Testament in regard of the spiritual things thereby signified and exhibited were for substance the same with those of the new. Now, the Westminster's divines weren't making things up. They read 1 Corinthians 10. They were reading the scriptures deeply and thoughtfully and recognize that this is what Paul taught, this is what Christ taught, that the substance of all the sacraments, Old and New Testament, is Christ. And so, when Paul says they ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink, I don't think it's helpful to think, yeah, they had the same kind of bread and they were eating it together. No, they ate the same spiritual food, the same spiritual drink as us. He's establishing continuity. There's continuity in the substance of the covenant. Now, a question that comes up every time we talk about the sacraments, and especially when we emphasize that they do have a spiritual work that is occurring, the natural question is, do they work automatically or independent of faith? The answer is no. And this passage, especially, is a slam dunk on that question, because Paul follows up with threats for idolaters, which makes no sense if the sacraments are efficacious independent of faith. But if the sacraments are only efficacious by faith, then the calls to forsake idolatry make a lot of sense. And so we come now to not only the continuity of the substance of the sacraments, but now to the continuity of the threats to idolaters. Paul says in verse five, nevertheless, with most of them, God was not pleased for they were overthrown in the wilderness. And by most, we mean like overwhelmingly. Because remember when they came to the land of Canaan and they initially rejected the report of the spies, God said, everyone that was counted in the census as an adult is going to die in the wilderness, except for Caleb and Joshua. So that's most, that's definitely most. He says, these things took place as examples for us that we might not desire evil as they did. This is not just a history lesson. Oh, isn't that neat that that happened in the past? No, these things are written for our instruction, our learning, and particularly because they were a mixed people made up of unregenerate and regenerative alike, just like we are. And so the warnings against idolatry, as applicable as it was for them, are just as applicable for us as the visible corporate people of God. Paul says, we must not be like those who were among our fathers, but were not actually our fathers in the faith, essentially. We must not be idolaters as some of them were. We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did. We must not put Christ to the test as some of them did. We must not grumble as some of them did. Over and over again. And he references these different Old Testament passages where judgment came upon the people of God because of idolatry. And again, we are encouraged to learn from this example. 1 Corinthians 10, 12 says, therefore, let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. What are we to take heed of? What we're to take heed of is that it is not just a mere external application of the sacraments that's efficacious. 1 Peter 3, we get hung up on, it says, We read it earlier. Baptism, which corresponds to the flood, now saves you. And we get hung up on that. But says not... I better glance at it real quick or I'll misquote it. Not as a removal of dirt from the body. In other words, not just as the water is flowing over your skin. Not as a mere automatic thing. but as an appeal to God for a good conscience through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. In other words, it's effectual by faith. And all the sacraments are only ever efficacious by faith. To avoid the wrath that fell upon our fathers in the wilderness, we must embrace Christ by faith and not fall into idolatry as some of them did, not fall into sin as some of them did. And this isn't a, Demand for perfection, it's a demand for faithfulness. A demand, and even there, a demand of a faith response. Cling to Christ by faith. And it's just to emphasize again, the continuity of these things. Let's continue and look at our communion with Christ. Paul's application of all these things is to flee idolatry. He says in verse 15, I speak as to sensible people, judge for yourselves what I say. He basically says, this is common sense. This is a sensible thing. What is sensible? What is the basic logic of Paul's argument? The basic logic is that idolatry unites us with demons. The sacraments unite us to Christ. It is not only ridiculous, but wicked to attempt to unite ourselves with demons after we've been united to Christ. And Christ's overall point in this whole chapter is that there's only one holy meal that Christians can partake in. So you know that a regular problem in the New Testament is, can I eat meat that's been sacrificed to an idol? Can I eat meat that came from a sacrifice at a pagan temple? And Paul says, yes, you can do that. Because often in the ancient world, that's where most of your meat came from, was a religious ritual at a temple. But as we'll say in the paragraphs later, the issue is if an unbeliever invites you to dinner and you're disposed to go, eat whatever is set before you without raising any questions on the ground of conscience. But if someone says to you, this has been offered in sacrifice, then do not eat it for the sake of the one who informed you for the sake of conscience." The idea here is if the one that has invited you says, this is a holy meal, this is going to be a holy meal to Zeus. I can't partake in that. because I only have one holy meal that I'm permitted to partake in, and that is the Lord's Supper. That's the overall point. But for our purposes this morning, I want to focus particularly on verses 16 and 17, and not so much focus on the warning aspect, but what is assumed by Paul, again, in the continuity of the substance. In verses 10 through 16, Paul says, the cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread. Now the KJV and the Geneva Bible both say communion here, instead of participation. That helps us to understand where the word communion comes from when we refer to the Lord's Supper. What does it mean to participate or commune with the blood and body of Christ? And here we want to emphasize, there are many evangelicals that want to say that the Lord's Supper is a mere memorial. It is nothing more than a remembering of something that happened in history. Now, the most important thing that ever happened in history, but still nonetheless, only a memory. We do not affirm that. It is a memory. Absolutely. but there is a real communion, not just with each other, but with Christ, a real participation in Christ. And I think to help us with these things, the Heidelberg Catechism is very helpful. And I would encourage you, if you didn't read what I shared in the email, that part of the Heidelberg Catechism will be very helpful in helping us think through the sacraments, what they are, and how we are to think rightly about them, how we are to use them. Heidelberg Catechism, question 75 says, how does the Holy Supper remind you and assure you that you share in Christ's one sacrifice on the cross and in all his benefits? The question is about participation in Christ, about communion with Christ, about sharing in Christ's one sacrifice on the cross and in all his benefits. The answer is in this way. Christ has commanded me and all believers to eat this broken bread and to drink this cup in remembrance of him. With this command come these promises. First, as surely as I see with my eyes the bread of the Lord broken for me and the cup shared with me, so surely his body was offered and broken for me and his blood poured out for me on the cross. Second, as surely as I receive from the hand of the one who serves, and taste with my mouth the bread and cup of the Lord, given me as sure signs of Christ's body and blood. So surely he nourishes and refreshes my soul for eternal life with his crucified body and poured out blood." In other words, it's a visible sermon. And just as I am nourished by the taking in of the food and the drink physically, So by faith, in obedience of the sacrament administered, I am nourished spiritually. I grow. I grow in my love of the Savior, and I grow in hatred of my sin. We drink together and eat together to signify our union with Christ, and through him, our union with each other. This is why the Lord's Supper ought not to be observed without the body, the church. This is not something I do privately at home or even privately with my family. This is something that's done with the family of God. This is why we ought to formally commit to and formally join a local body in order to partake of the supper, to be formally brought into the family so that we can have true communion. This is about communion with Christ primarily, but also his people. And this is a very formal thing. And in 1 Corinthians 11, the next chapter, which is extremely important when we think about the Lord's Supper and the great warning that's given for those who partake in an unworthy manner. What's undergirding this whole thing is the assumption that you're coming together to do this. Paul has no thought to this being done as a private individual thing. He says in verse 20, And he's criticizing them here. He says, when you come together, it is not the Lord's supper that you eat. For in eating, each one goes ahead with his own meal. One goes hungry and another gets drunk. Notice the emphasis is on you're breaking the communion element by focusing on yourself when you're eating and drinking these things. But they've come together, which is good. And in verse 33, after he's given the warning and after he's given the teaching on the Lord's Supper. So then my brothers, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. If anyone is hungry, let him eat at home so that when you come together, it will not be for judgment about the other things I will give instructions when I come. But notice the assumption is that this is about communion, communion with Christ and through him with each other. This is part of what it means in our participation in the body of Christ, participation in the blood of Christ that we are all doing together corporately. And this participation in the body of Christ is also present in baptism, though not picked up on here in 1 Corinthians 10. For example, Romans 6. Verses one through four, Paul says, what shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means. How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death. In order that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of God the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. Notice the language of baptism also uniting us to Christ. The Lord's Supper is a participation in the body and blood of Christ. Baptism is a union with the body of Christ. Galatians 3, verse 27 says, for as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. Just like with the Lord's Supper, the Heidelberg Catechism helps us to understand these things in question 69. How does holy baptism remind and assure you that Christ's one sacrifice on the cross benefits you personally. In this way, Christ instituted this outward washing and with it promised that as surely as water washes away the dirt from the body, so certainly his blood and his spirit wash away my soul's impurity, that is all my sins. So we've seen this morning, there is a continuity with our fathers and with us in the substance of the sacraments. And that substance is Christ. We've seen, therefore, there is a continuity with the threats of idolatry, because we are a mixed people just as they were, made up of elect and non-elect. And so the threats of idolatry are important and very much in play, but we are not to go any other direction in trying to flee idolatry but to Christ. And through the sacraments that we have been given, We have participation with Christ. We have union with Christ and communion with Christ. So, I want to conclude with the reading of the truth taught. God has always given signs and seals, the sacraments, to his people to minister the grace of Christ to them. Let us pray. Heavenly Father, we do thank you again for this service. We pray that you help us to better treasure and enjoy the sacraments that you've given for our benefit. We pray that they would be a blessing to us as we partake in them and as we meditate upon them. Lord, we do love you and we pray that you'd bless us as we continue in this service. In Jesus name, amen.