On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover lamb is sacrificed, Jesus’ disciples asked him, “Where do you want us to go to prepare the Passover meal for you?”
13 So Jesus sent two of them into Jerusalem with these instructions: “As you go into the city, a man carrying a pitcher of water will meet you. Follow him.
14 At the house he enters, say to the owner, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is the guest room where I can eat the Passover meal with my disciples?’
15 He will take you [upstairs] to a large room that is already set up. That is where you should prepare our meal.”
16 So the two disciples went into the city and found everything just as Jesus had said, and they prepared the Passover meal there.
17 In the evening Jesus arrived with the twelve disciples.
18 As they were at the table eating, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, one of you eating with me here will betray me.”
19 Greatly distressed, each one asked in turn, “Am I the one?”
20 He replied, “It is one of you twelve who is eating from this bowl with me.
21 For the Son of Man must die, as the Scriptures declared long ago. But how terrible it will be for the one who betrays him. It would be far better for that man if he had never been born!”
22 As they were eating, Jesus took some bread and blessed it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take it, for this is my body.”
23 And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them, and they all drank from it.
24 And he said to them, “This is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice for many.
25 I tell you the truth, I will not drink wine again until the day I drink it new in the Kingdom of God.”
26 Then they sang a hymn and went out to the Mount of Olives. – Mark 14:12-26 (NLT)
My greatest fear, as a pastor, is that I’ll fail to lead my congregation to do anything but ‘go through the motions’ when it comes to Holy Communion. This should be one of the most meaningful times we spend together as the Body of Christ—the people of God
So, what does it really mean—Holy Communion? What was going on during that very special Passover meal that Jesus was having with his disciples? And what is that to us today? Let me share with you a couple of thoughts tonight…
HOLY COMMUNION is … remembrance (a memorial). But this remembrance is more than just intellectually recalling Jesus’ mandate “Do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19; 1 Corinthians 11:24-25).The Greek word used her in scripture is anamnesis—a dynamic action that becomes a re-presentation of God’s gracious acts of the past, but in such a way as to be present now! Christ is risen and is alive here and now … not just remembered for what he did in the past!
HOLY COMMUNION is … sacrifice. It is a re-presentation (not a repetition) of the sacrifice of Christ. If you want to dig into what Holy Communion really means, go to the NT book of Hebrews, Chapter 9, and read it.
In particular, Hebrews 9:26b makes clear that ‘…he sacrificed himself once and for all, summing up all the other sacrifices in this sacrifice of himself, the final solution of sin.’ Jesus’ atoning life, death, and resurrection make divine grace available to all of us who put our faith in him!
We also present ourselves a living sacrifice in union with Christ (Rom. 12:1; 1 Peter 2:5) to be used by God in the work of redemption, reconciliation, and justice. In our traditional Great Thanksgiving Holy Communion liturgy, the Church prays: “We offer ourselves in praise and thanksgiving as a holy and living sacrifice, in union with Christ’s offering for us…” (UMH, p. 10).
HOLY COMMUNION is also … a means of grace (God’s grace). In other words, it’s a vehicle through which the Holy Spirit of God can work … and it’s described in John 14:26: “The Friend, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send at my request, will make everything plain to you. He will remind you of all the things I have told you.” This is the part of our traditional liturgy for Holy Communion that beckons the HS to be active in our lives: “Pour out your Holy Spirit on us gathered here, and on these gifts of bread and wine (juice, in our case).” Then, the Church asks God—referring to the bread and the juice—to “…make them be for us the body and blood of Christ, that we may be for the world the body of Christ, redeemed by his blood. By your Spirit make us one with Christ, one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world…” (UMH, p. 10).
So, tonight let’s not just go through the motions, but…
Let’s be about remembering in such a way as to know that Christ is alive and present with us now…
Let’s be about remembering the incredible sacrifice of Jesus—joining with him as living sacrifices today … to be used by God in the work of redemption, reconciliation, and justice.
And finally, let’s open up our lives during this time of communion–a means of grace–to the Spirit of Christ … who helps make us one with Christ, one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world…