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Good Shepherd Lutheran Church Today's Frontline Devotion The Lord’s Supper March 17, 2009 |
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Frontline Devotion for Tuesday, March 17, 2009 by Anne B. Crawford
“Let me go over with you again exactly what goes on in the Lord's Supper and why it is so centrally important. I received my instructions from the Master himself and passed them on to you. The Master, Jesus, on the night of his betrayal, took bread. Having given thanks, he broke it and said,
This is my body, broken for you.
Do this to remember me.
After supper, he did the same thing with the cup:
This cup is my blood, my new covenant with you.
Each time you drink this cup, remember me.
What you must solemnly realize is that every time you eat this bread and every time you drink this cup, you reenact in your words and actions the death of the Master. You will be drawn back to this meal again and again until the Master returns. You must never let familiarity breed contempt.” (1Corinthians 11:23-26
The Message Bible)
Familiarity can breed contempt. We can all recall situations when what started out as a good idea becomes habit or rote and either loses some of its power or takes on meanings never intended. It happens with rituals (think of family gatherings, originally designed to be happy occasions to bring family members together to establish solidarity, that have degenerated into dreaded encounters that no one enjoys) and relationships (think of wives and husbands who take one another for granted and eventually turn to contempt for or worse, apathy towards each other). Paul was addressing the Christians in Corinth. They had not only forgotten the original intent of participating in the Lord’s Supper, but they were apparently willfully distorting its meaning to indulge in very selfish and destructive behaviors and practices. In preceding verses in 1Corinthians 11, Paul chastises the Corinthians for turning the Lord’s Supper into just another meal, bringing in all kinds of foods, eating and drinking to excess, and probably more importantly, using the meal as an opportunity to lord it over one another and even denying food to some (the poorest, least influential) – leaving them out and letting them go hungry. Paul uses verses 23-26 to remind the Corinthians, and us, about the true meaning and intent of the Lord’s Supper.
It is first and foremost, a meal about unity – us united with Christ and in his death. We are reminded that we are to die to sin with Christ. We are reminded of Christ’s new covenant with us – a covenant of forgiveness and His command that we love one another. The Lord’s Supper is all about community and loving and forgiving one another and remembering God’s ultimate sacrifice for all of us and our call to live out what it truly means to be a follower of Jesus. The Lord’s Supper is not a place to pull rank, and should never become so rote that it loses its importance and significance. Luther’s explanation of the Lord’s Supper in the small catechism notes that the words “for you” (this is my body given for you; this is my blood shed for you) “require all hearts to believe” and it is believing in Jesus (not rank, or good deeds or fewer or less ‘sinful’ sins than my neighbor) and His death for our sins and resurrection - that makes us worthy and prepared to participate in the holy meal.
Prayer: Thank you God, for the open invitation to your Holy Supper. Help me to prepare not just my own heart and attitude for this meal, but to invite others to belief and to share the incredible and all-powerful gift of your presence and forgiveness, poured out in Holy Communion. Amen.
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All are welcome to join and share in our Devotional Ministry on the "Frontlines" of the world. Frontline Devotions are sent via email daily. Sign up by clicking on the box to the left. Pastor Dave welcomes feedback. Contact him at pastordave@goodshepherdonline.org. |
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