3 reasons why communion is so important.

Introduction:

Today we will be celebrating the Lord’s supper. At this church and many other churches in the United States, communion is celebrated once a month. Many Christians, including myself, take communion way too lightly. If you do not believe me ask yourselves the following questions:

1. How long did you prepare for Easter? Did you buy any easter eggs? Did you plan an easter dinner or lunch?

2. How much time did you prepare for Christmas? How long did you shop? Did you listen to any Christmas music? Did you plan a meal or buy presents? How long did all this take you?

3. How long did you prepare for communion? Do you even know what Sunday it will happen on? Did you even think about it this week?

We as Christians have forgotten why communion is so important. Today I want to really show you why the Lord’s Supper is so important. So let me give you:

Main Point: 3 reasons why communion is so important.

Passage: 1 Cor 11:23-26 (read)

Context:

The book of 1 Corinthians was written to a church that had some serious problems. Paul, in the first six chapters of the letter deals with the church’s difficulties with unity, handling of sinful issues, sexual immorality, believers suing each other, and the list goes on. If you read those chapters, it is clear that the church is not a healthy church. From chapters 7 all the way to chapter 15, the apostle also discusses certain issues the church has asked him about. You could think of these chapters as a question and answer time with Paul. The church in Corinth asked Paul about all sorts of topics including marriage and spiritual gifts. They also asked about our freedom we have in Jesus Christ; what we are free to do and what we should not do and why we should not do it. The passage about communion falls into this section. You see the Corinthians had abused their freedom bought by Jesus Christ to mock the very thing that celebrated what gave them their freedom. At that time, the early church had a dinner with communion and instead of worshipping Jesus and remembering what He did for them, they instead used it as an opportunity for extreme selfishness. Paul observes that some would eat so much that they were even drunk! While others, who probably were poorer, continued to go hungry. The Corinthians had turned the Lord’s Supper into a pagan party because they were selfish. They did not act right and it was so bad that God had killed certain members of the Corinthian church for that very reason.

Before we even talk about the 3 reasons why communion is so important, we could even stop here and see another one. Communion is important because communion is not about you. You cannot be selfish when you celebrate this feast. It is not for you to feel good or to enjoy although that might happen. Our primary focus in communion is not us and if that has been our focus, we have been sinning against God. And don’t forget, God takes that quite seriously – He is even willing to kill people for that sin. The context of this passage shows us how the Corinthians conducted communion incorrectly. We should not follow their pattern of selfishness.

However, in verses 23-26 of chapter 11, our passage for today, Paul explains to us how communion is supposed to be and why it is so important. Let me give you the three major reasons from this passage why communion is so important:

I. Because it is commanded by the Lord Himself (v. 23a)

II. Because it remembers all that our Lord has done for us (v. 23b-25)

III. Because it demonstrates our future hope (v. 26).

Let’s talk about the first point:

I. Because it is commanded by the Lord Himself (v. 23a)

A. Meaning

Overall, Paul in this phrase emphasizes that communion is a direct command of the Lord. Notice how the apostle makes this statement so strong. Paul first states that “I received” even better we could translate this “I myself received” or “I personally received.” Paul emphasizes how directly he received the instructions on communion. This was not something that Christ gave and a person inflated. Paul received it personally from Jesus Christ. “From the Lord” tells us that our Lord Jesus Christ alone commanded communion. This was not inspired by Him, communion was not suggested by Him, communion was not another person’s idea. It was commanded by Jesus Christ. And the precise way our Lord desired communion, the precise reasons He gave for it, Paul now will hand them over to the Corinthians and to us.

If you do not how this fits together, let me tell you a quick story. I heard about a man (let’s call him Mr. Smith) who gave very strong instructions about his funeral to his pastor and family. His funeral was supposed to be simple: 1 song, 1 gospel message, and 1 prayer. However, when he died, the family decided that this was far to simple and so they added more and more onto the funeral. Soon there was congregational singing, special music, 3 eulogies, 2 prayers, and 1 gospel message. When the pastor came up to the pulpit to preach, he began with a joke, “I’m glad Mr. Smith is dead because he certainly would not like to have seen his funeral!”

Communion is not like that. No one added or subtracted from God’s direct instruction. No one modified it in any way. Rather what we have today was given directly to Paul and given directly to us. Paul emphasizes to us here that what we have is our Lord’s direct command; not more and nothing less!

B. Application

Do you realize that no other Christian holiday that we celebrate is commanded by God? Christmas is not commanded by God. Easter is not commanded by God. Yet we spend so much more time with those holidays than with communion which is not only commanded by the Lord Jesus Christ but also with a great amount of detail. He gave them to us so that we would follow them! If you do not celebrate Christmas it is not a sin, if you do not celebrate Easter it is not a sin, but if you do not correctly celebrate communion the exact way Jesus Christ commanded, you are sinning against God! You need to be more concerned about communion than about Christmas, you need to be more concerned about communion than about Easter because God commanded communion alone. He is more concerned about the Lord’s Supper than about Christmas and Easter which are man-made holidays! God commanded communion and so we ought to really pay attention to it.

II. Because it remembers all that our Lord has done for us (v. 23b-25)

This actually breaks down into two points:

A. It Remembers His Tremendous Sacrifice For Us (v. 23b-24)

1. Meaning: Jesus visibly demonstrates what will happen to Him by breaking the bread. His sacrifice allowed God to pass over us in His wrath by becoming the one who received the full wrath of God. Where we should have been broken to pieces, Jesus was instead. And so we are to remember that by breaking bread.

2. Application: If you really value what Jesus has done for us on the cross, if you really want to thank Him, here is one of the best ways to do it. Celebrate communion, understand what He has done for us, and remember it.

B. It Remembers His Tremendous Gift To Us (v. 25)

1. Meaning: Jesus also provided us with the New Covenant. The new covenant is a covenant of great blessing. It provides spiritual renewal in the present time and it promises a future in God’s Kingdom. Every blessing we have is because of the New Covenant. Every joy you have in Jesus Christ is due to the New Covenant. The fact that the Holy Spirit allows you to understand God, His Word, comforts you, is all because of God’s guarantees in the New Covenant. Jesus has made us worthy of the New Covenant by atoning for us with His blood. We are to remember this when we drink the wine (or juice J).

2. Application: If you value your current Christian status and future hope, commemorate it in communion.

**Overall Application: Communion is so rich because it celebrates the entire work of Jesus Christ – all that He has done for us. While many of our made up holidays (like Christmas and Easter) only celebrate one part, communion is so full because it remembers all that He has done. If you really want to remember and to praise and thank Jesus for all that He has done, then you should celebrate communion. The reason communion is so important is because it incorporates everything and because of that it is the only commanded commemoration of Jesus Christ. It is not just going through the motions but remembering Jesus Christ in everything that He has done for us.

III. Because it demonstrates our future hope (v. 26).

A. Meaning: The emphasis is that we are to proclaim Christ’s death until He comes. The idea of preaching here has a special emphasis with the timing of the preaching – that we fill the time “until He comes” with the proclamation of our Lord’s death. We do not just remember what our Lord has done for us in the past but we remember it for the future to see Him – that’s the most important point; the very goal of all that He has done for us. Whenever you celebrate communion it should ultimately make you long for Jesus Christ more.

B. Application: How often when you take communion do you long to see Jesus Christ face to face? When you take communion do you anticipate the coming of Jesus Christ more? Communion is designed to really transform you, to make you into a better Christian; more like Jesus Christ and more in love with the Savior. It can only happen if you really have obeyed God and celebrate communion as He required, it can only happen if you really meditate on all that Jesus has done for you, and it can only happen if all of that makes you yearn for Him more. Communion is not just going through the motions – it is hard, deliberate work that brings great expectation and joy. And it should happen whenever you do it…every single time.

Conclusion

Communion is important because God commanded it – it is the only Christian celebration that God has clearly commanded us to observe. It is that important to Him and so should be important to us. It is important because it celebrates everything Jesus has done. It really is a rich expression of what our Savior has accomplished for us. It is important because it points to our future hope. It makes us ultimately love the Savior whom we’ve been remembering.

If you want to obey God’s command, if you want to really deeply remember all that Jesus has done and experience the riches of His work for us, if you want to really love Him more and yearn for Him better – then take communion seriously. So please take some time now and prepare your heart…carefully read this passage over again and think through what it means.