The Lord's Supper
As usual, I won't be saying anything that hasn't already been said or written.....but I want to get your take on my perception of something. All 2 or 3 of you please comment so that I can get a feel for if I am on track or not.
Here goes: I know it's about the heart. I know HOW we do something is not as important as where our heart is while we are doing it. I hope you are as thankful for that as I am, because if it were about doing it "right", all of us would be in a pickle.......agree? We humans seem to be successful at just one thing......messing things up. You better believe you can count on us to do that. It's been going on from Adam and Eve to me and you. Having said all of that, especially the disclaimer about it being about the heart.........is there any part of the Sunday assembly (I am trying to quit using the term "worship service" because I know every day is supposed to be one of those) that we have messed up MORE than "the Lord's Supper"? By messed up I mean this.......gotten away from the original intent. I am not accusing anybody of getting things messed up on purpose. I know that you can't do things with a large gathering of people like you can in a small intimate setting, like a New Testament house church. I hope you appreciate my willingness to expose my ignorance, but is there an example in the New Testament when the Lord's Supper was NOT part of a regular meal? I am not implying that it would be WRONG to have it outside of a meal, but wouldn't you agree if EVERY time we see it happening in the New Testament it is part of a bigger fellowship meal we might want to at least do it sometimes as opposed to NEVER?!?!?! After all, aren't we the ones who hammer others for not following a "New Testament pattern"? Please don't hear me saying the way we do it at the present is WRONG.....I just am wondering out loud if maybe we aren't cheating ourselves of something really special. Maybe not in all places, but most places within our fellowship the Lord's Supper is something we "have" to do, and the quicker the better. If that does not describe what takes place at your congregation, then I need to say two things.........forgive me, and then let me know where you are because I for SURE want to visit your congregation!
So what is the solution? I hope you weren't depending on this pea-brain to have any answers. I AM willing to pea-brainstorm with you. I know this brings us to the form vs function discussion. I will leave that one for you scholars. But wouldn't a starting place be that maybe we plan a Sunday fellowship meal that would include this special meal once in a blue moon? Hey here is another bold suggestion......what if we didn't have a time limit on our Sunday assemblies? Radical concept, huh? Especially if it meant missing the Cowboys or Packers one Sunday. Oh the sacrifices this discipleship stuff brings! :) I wonder how many people who don't see us offering anything special at the present might rethink that if we invited them to be part of a meal with us? Especially the poor and outcast. Heaven forbid they "use" us to meet their physical needs.
Like I said, none of these thoughts or suggestions are anywhere close to being original........but it has really been on my heart these past few days and I knew I could count on some of you to tell me I am looney tunes or a trouble maker, and worst case scenerio the dreaded "change agent"!! :) Is it a stretch to think that Jesus might have been labeled one of those? I know he was called much worse.
Ok, I am ready for some of you to unload on me. If I can't take it from those I love, who can I take it from? In the words of Bill Withers "keep on using me, till you use me up"! :) Thanks for listening.
7 Comments:
Hmmm the dreaded "change agent", sometimes the shoe has fit... But I am all for it, shake it up, follow the New Testament example, have a whole meal, take ALL day! I tend to zone-out when I have done something the same way for a long time. I can't recall any details of my drive to work because I do it without thinking. Yes, it is up to me to keep my heart and mind in the right place, but I need help in focusing! Would it be such a stretch to believe that other people do too! We miss too great an opportunity to commune with Christ and to share with one another when we just go through the motions week after week. I too would struggle with implementation, but let's try! I need this contact with Jesus! I need the love of my brothers and sisters, I need to be reminded of the sacrifice that was made for me, it is the one time I can be selfish.. it was just for me! Of course you can say the same, that is so great! Why do we cheat ourselves from truly experiencing this blessing! O.K. I will be stepping off of the soap box now...
I know that books aren't the source of all knowledge, but one that has been helpful to me is John Mark Hick's "Come to the Table." In this book, he helped me to see a difference between Christ's crucifixion and the Lord's Supper. All my life I have been raised that the LS is when you think about how bad a person you are, how much you sinned, etc...but his take on it is that this is a celebration, a meal made possible by the death and resurrection of Christ.
Also, do some reading in Justin Martyr...his works (I think it's his Apologies) describe what life WAS like in the early church. It seems to me that the sharing of this meal was central to their whole order of worship.
But you're right, this can't be solved in a single blog conversation...but I do hope to do some things differently with the churches we plant. I want to bring back the centrality of this act, and not of the sermon, to our times together...
Anyway,...must get back to work....
Greg
At our congregation, a radical change in prioritizing the LS is to take the communion before we have our 2 songs. This "emphasizes" its importance!That was mean, but your suggestions of eating a meal in conjunction with the LS would encourage more fellowship and enteraction together. Our culture is certainly more time conscious than the first century church. If some joker leads a prayer before breaking bread that lasts more than 90 seconds, we find ourselves opening one eye to check our watches,(maybe thats just me, I dunno). We tend to put a stopwatch on everything...class time(uh-oh, the second bell rang class...we'll see if Jesus raises from the tomb next week). I'm guilty of going to early service because it gives me more time in the afternoon...to get "stuff" done. In Guyana, when our family went on a medical mission campaign, we told little white lies about when the evening service would start...say 6:00pm when it was actually going to start at 7:00pm. Why? Because they aren't slaves to a wristwatch. They get there when they get there. Usually because they are visiting, playing, eating, walking, lollygagging along enjoying life. I wish I, we, enjoyed that pace...especially on Sundays when we should be praising God, communally, all day. Good suggestion.
Keith
Though I've forgotten the details, I can't forget the gist of a story brought back from South America by a visiting missionary; from a country where a caste system is still very much in place.
A new convert, low in life's station there, was shy around others of higher station; his head low and his eyes averted even when spoken to. He always addressed others by "Senor" or "Senora" and their last name. The missionary determined to get to know him better, and assure him that in Christ, all are equal.
In that church, it was their custom to pass the bread and wine from one person to the next, each saying something to the person beside him like: "Paolo, this is the body of Christ, which was broken for you" or "Pedro, this is Jesus' blood, given so you may live."
One Sunday the new brother stood next to the missionary (whose station in life was perceived to be very high), and passed each emblem, called him by his first name, and looked right into his eyes when he spoke his blessing.
I think we could use more communing like that with each other - as well as with Christ - at the table.
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