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- Preaching the Living WORD through
the Written WORD - 2 Tim 4;:2 - |
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ECCLESIASTICAL
VIEW OF THE CHURCH: THE LORD’S SUPPER (Ep 3:3-11; Mt 16:18; Ac 2:24-47; 1Co 11:23-30)
10/28/12 Grace Bible Church,
Gillette, Wyoming Pastor Daryl Hilbert I. ORDINANCE VS. SACRAMENT A. Sacrament 1. An
“ordinance” is a rite, liturgy, or practice of the Christian Church. Some
have called the ordinances of the church, “sacraments.” 2. However, a sacrament is believed by many
to be a medium by which grace is dispensed. 3. The Council of Trent defined a sacrament
as, something presented to the sense, which has the power, by divine
institution, not only of signifying, but also of efficiently conveying grace.
4. The Roman Catholic Church holds to seven
sacraments. They are the Eucharist, Baptism, Confirmation, Penance, Anointing
the Sick, Matrimony, and Holy Orders. B. Ordinance 1. An
ordinance is an authoritative order given by Christ to the Church that
conveys symbolic value. 2. The majority of Protestant churches
regard Baptism and the Lord’s Supper as the only two ordinances for the
church. Some include foot washing. II. THE ORDINANCE OF THE
LORD’S SUPPER A. The Background of the Lord’s Supper 1. The Lord’s Supper took place during the annually celebrated
Passover (Mt 26:17-19). 2. The Passover was celebrated in
remembrance of the Lord’s passing over the houses of the Israelites with
blood on their doorposts (Ex 12:11-27). 3. On the first day of the Passover (also
called the Feast of the Unleavened Bread), the lambs were sacrificed and the
Passover meal immediately followed. 4. It began with the prayer of
“thanksgiving” (eucharisti,a) from which we receive the name the “Eucharist” for the Lord’s
Supper (cp. Mt 26:27; Mk 14:23; Lk 22:17; 1Co 11:24). Herbs, roasted lamb,
unleavened bread, and cups of wine were part of the celebration. 5. At some point during the Passover meal
Jesus gave thanks, distributed the unleavened bread along with the cup of
wine and gave the meaning and ordinance for the church (cp. Ex 12:24-27). 6. Close
to or during the exact time of the sacrificing of the lambs during the
Passover, Jesus was being crucified as the Lamb of God, “who takes away the
sin of the world” (Jn 1:29). B. The Institution of the
Lord’s Supper 1. The Lord’s Supper was performed by the Lord (Mt 26:26-30; Mk
14:22-25; Lk 22:17-22). a) The act and the symbolism of the Lord’s Supper was instituted
by the Lord. b) Not everything the Lord partook with His
disciples on every occasion was an ordinance to be repeated in the church. 2. The
Lord’s Supper was commanded by the Lord (1Co 11:23-25). a) What
determined that the Lord’s Supper was an ordinance to be repeated was the
fact that Paul himself “received” (paralamba,nō
- receive to oneself)
instructions for the Lord’s Supper either directly from the Lord (cp. Ga
1:12) or “from” (apo, not para, (beside),
cp. Ga 1:12) the other
apostles with the Lord’s authority (Ga 1:18). b) Most scholars believe that First
Corinthians was written (A.D. 56) before any of the Gospels, thereby making
this the first biblical account of the institution of the Lord’s Supper. c) Paul delivered it to the Corinthians
(also to all the churches) as an ordinance to be handed down and continued
while on his second missionary journey (A.D. 50-54). “Deliver” is the Greek
word paradi,dōmi and carries the idea of an authoritative
instruction or tradition to be “handed over” (cp. 1Co 5:5; 15:3; para,dosis
- 1Co 11:2; 2Th 2:15; 3:6).
d) Paradi,dōmi
was also used and
applied to the Lord when He was “betrayed”
(paradi,dōmi - “handed over”) to the authorities to be crucified (Mt
26:15 also cp. Ro 8:32). e) The ordinance of the Lord’s Supper is to
be observed by Christians until the Lord returns (1Co 11:26). The frequency
of the Lord’s Supper is not specified so that it is left up to the church to
decide appropriate regularity. 3. The
Lord’s Supper will take place in the Kingdom (Mt 26:29; Mk 14:25; Lk 22:16,
18). a) Whether
the Lord will continue the ordinance of the Lord’s Supper is not known. b) However, we know that it will be repeated
at least one last time with the Lord and His bride. C. The Symbolism of the Lord’s Supper 1. Unleavened bread was used during the Passover and no leavened
bread was to be eaten or kept in the household (Ex 12:15). a) Unleavened bread was also a symbol of purity from sin (1Co
5:7-8). b) Jesus
said, “Take, eat, this is my body” (Mt 26:26; Mk 14:22). This does not mean
that it turns into the body of Christ. The Scriptures state that He died on
the cross “once for all” (epha,pax - He 7:27), not needing to be sacrificed again. c) Jesus said, “this is my body which is for
you” (Lk 22:19; 1Co 11:24). Christ used the bread as a symbol of his
voluntary sacrifice on behalf of sinners (“for” you - Gk hupe,r - in
place of, on behalf of; Ro 5:8; 2Co 5:21; Ep 5:2). d) The Textus Receptus (Greek manuscript for
KJV) includes klōmenon (“being broken”) but its genuineness is
disputable. Lk 22:19 is undisputed in its addition of dido,menon (“being given” for you). The Scriptures
explicitly state that not a bone was broken in Christ’s body in fulfillment
of prophecy (Jn 19:33, 36). 2. During Jesus’ time, the “cup” or the “fruit of the vine” (Mt
26:29; Mk 14:25; Lk 22:18) was used in the Passover. a) Several changes had taken place in Israel’s history with the
celebration of the Passover (cp. Dt 16:2, 5, 6; 2Ch 30:16; Le 23:10-14; Nu
9:10, 11; 28:16-24). b) The
“fruit of the vine” is wine used by Christ and the early church (cp. 1Co
11:21) to symbolize His “blood” (Mk 14:24; Lk 22:20; 1Co 11:25) which was
shed for the “forgiveness of sins” (Mt 26:28 cp. He 9:22). Again this spoke
of Christ’s blood shed “once for all” on the cross (epha,pax - He 9:12; 10:10) and not
Transubstantiation . D. The Significance of the Lord’s Supper 1. Remembrance of the Lord’s Death a) The
word “remembrance” comes from the word ana,mnêsis
and means to bring up
for recall and weigh well or consider. (Lk 22:19; 1Co 11:24, 25). The church
is to corporately and regularly remember the sacrifice of Christ for them.
The Lord’s Supper is a remembrance of the blood of Christ applied to the
doorposts of the believer’s heart at the moment of faith in Christ. b) This remembrance coincides with the
regular participation of a memorial and an ordinance (cp. Ex 12:14). Baptists
and Bible Churches have historically maintained that the Lord’s Supper is a
memorial and not a sacrament dispensing grace, as do as most denominations. 2. Proclamation of the Lord’s Death a) Jesus stated that the Lord’s Supper was a
“proclamation” (kataggéllō) or a making known of a
message (1Co 11:26). b) Believers
are making known the message of Christ’s death to the world every time they
partake of the ordinance of the Lord’s Supper. 3. Proclamation of the Lord’s Coming a) The Lord’s Supper is a proclamation of the
Second Coming of Christ (1Co 11:26). b) We
will partake of the Lord’s Supper with Christ in His kingdom (Mt 26:29). c) Therefore, the Lord’s Supper is an
anticipation of communion and reunion with Christ at His coming. 4. Self-Examination of the Believer a) The context of 1Co 11:28ff is about the
believers in Corinth who would have a Love Feast while they partook of the
Lord’s Supper. However, Paul notes their abuses in that some were getting
drunk, eating all the food leaving nothing for others, and participating in
divisions (1Co 11:20-21). b) The
Corinthians were warned about ignoring such unspiritual and self-serving
behavior while partaking of the Lord’s Supper (1Co 11:27). c) The consequences for such behavior was
discipline from the Lord in the form of weakness, sickness, and even death
(1Co 11:30, 32). d) The Lord’s Supper, and the symbolism of
unleavened bread, is an exhortation to believers to remain pure and holy. e) Therefore, the Lord’s Supper reminds us
to continually take close self-examination of our Christian lives (1Co 11:28,
31). |
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