Looking at the Lord's Supper
13th September 2021
Looking Out
Remembering is powerful. It is why we can be moved to tears when we remember a departed loved one even years after their death. It is why we can recall significant moments often with great clarity – sometimes even remembering tiny details like smells and sounds. And we remember, often tangibly, how we felt when something happened.
And, therefore, what we experienced doesn’t just remain in the past but is also part of our present. The departed loved one who was a huge part of our past is still, though absent, a great part of our lives today.
When it comes to the Lord’s Supper, we do not only remember an event in history (Jesus’ death) or an event in our lives (our conversion). Instead, our remembrance of Jesus’ death has a great impact on our lives today. Paul says that every time we eat and drink the Lord’s Supper, we proclaim Jesus’ death.
For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. (1 Corinthians 11:26)
Lying between Jesus’ death in history and His return in the future is the present act of proclamation – an act that we carry out when we take the Lord’s Supper.
Who are we proclaiming to? Ourselves
When we participate in the Lord’s Supper, we are proclaiming Christ’s death in our own lives. The act of remembering what Christ has done for us causes us to, once again, declare our own trust in His death for our life. We come to the Lord’s Supper in the midst of our ever-changing lives – the circumstances and emotions we bring to the Lords’ table can change almost every time – but the Lord’s Supper allows us to declare to ourselves that Christ’s death is our only hope. We are able to consider the trials that we face and proclaim that Christ’s death is sufficient over every trial. We can consider the good things in life we experience and proclaim that Christ’s death is still where our hope lies.
Who are we proclaiming to? The Church
Who needs to hear the gospel? Your first answer is probably the lost – those who don’t know Jesus (and they do). But I’d say, the church needs to hear the gospel first. Christians need to hear the gospel again and again. And if Christians stop hearing the gospel, I’d suggest the lost won’t hear it either. Because the lost will only hear the gospel if we are regularly hearing it and being captivated by it.
So the Lord’s Supper is an opportunity to proclaim the gospel to one another. When we take the Lord’s Supper together, we proclaim to each other that we are placing all of our trust in Christ’s death. And we remind each other of the goodness of the gospel.
Who are we proclaiming to? The World
It perhaps sounds rather grand to say that the Lord’s Supper proclaims Christ's death to the world. But, by world, I mean those who do not belong to the church. Those who are not yet Christians. This may include our children who may, sometimes, witness us taking the Lord’s Supper and who we teach what it means. It may include those who do not yet believe but who are in attendance at a service and who, by watching our participation, see and hear the gospel.
But the Lord’s Supper goes even further. Because when we devote ourselves to the Lord’s Supper and allow the power of the gospel to transform our hearts, we become those who are increasingly captivated by Jesus and His gospel. And people who are captivated by Jesus and His gospel are people who share the gospel with the lost.
So as we proclaim Christ's death over our own lives and to one another,. the Lord’s Supper fuels us to go and share Jesus with others.
Next - Looking Forward