1Corinthians 11:23-32
Look Deep
Tonight is the Lord’s Supper. The Lord’s Supper has several
purposes for celebration.
1. It is a feast of obedience. God did not give a lot of rules for
this celebration but the fact that He gave it indicates that He
wants His people to participate in it. So there is a matter of
obedience.
2. It is a means of identifying ourselves with Christ.
1Cor 11:26 For as often as ye eat this bread,
and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death
till he come.
This is not a service for the unsaved. It is only for those who
do believe in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus
Christ. This service does the unsaved no good. It has no
purpose or meaning for them.
3. \\#24-25\\ It is a feast of remembrance. This is what gives this
service its meaning. It only stirs us as we remember what Jesus
did for us.
4. It is a feast of fellowship—not with one another, but with God.
Paul referred to the common cup which is passed as the cup of
communion and the common loaf that was used as the bread of
communion.
1Co 10:16 The cup of blessing which we bless,
is it not the communion of the blood of Christ?
The bread which we break, is it not the
communion of the body of Christ?
Hence, this feast represents our efforts to be at one with Jesus.
I believe that should be the striving of every believer, but I
also believe this service can of itself form a special union with
our Lord.
5. It is a feast of anticipation. We are to partake of this feast
until our Lord comes \\#26\\.
6. \\#29-32\\ It is a feast of examination.
I. I notice five words used in this section.
A. Two are what Christians are to with themselves specifically at
this service.
1. \\#28\\ We are to examine ourselves.
a. The word means to discern, prove, test ourselves.
b. This would include all four of the major walks of our
life.
(1) Our faith
(2) Our walk (in the world)
(3) Our worship
(4) Our service
2. \\#31\\ We are to judge ourselves.
a. The Greek word "to judge" is a powerful word.
b. It means to withdraw from, to contend against, to
fully separate from, to oppose.
c. The notion is that we move to change whatever we
discern is wrong.
B. Three are what we are attempting to escape.
1. \\#32\\ "chastening"
a. The implication is that if we do not catch our wrong
actions and turn from them, God will chasten us.
b. The word used here does not mean whip or spank.
c. It means to instruct or to teach.
2. \\#32\\ "condemned"
a. The message is that God will chasten us so that we do
not end up being condemned with the world.
b. The word means being judged or sentenced with the
world.
c. There are two ways to view this statement of
condemnation.
(1) Some believe saved people can lose their
salvation and be cast into the same hell that
the unsaved are cast.
(2) The other is to believe that how we respond to
God’s instruction manifests whether we are God’s
or not.
3. \\#29\\ "damnation"
a. That English word is used 15 times in our KJ New
Testament.
b. Strangely, only twice does it ever refer to a thing or
person being cast into hell. \\#2Peter 2:1, 3\\
c. The other 13 times, including this one, it means to be
condemned or to be judged.
d. It is a different Greek word but essentially means the
same as the word used in verse 32 for condemned.
C. So here is the challenge of the Lord’s Supper: It is to move
us to get close enough to God so that we can see, examine,
and fix ourselves as God would, but He is leaving it up to
us.
II. Paul gave this purpose in a context where illustrates what we
are to do and why.
A. The Lord’s Supper had devolved into a drunken feast.
1Cor 11:20 When ye come together therefore into
one place, this is not to eat the Lord’s supper.
21 For in eating every one taketh before other
his own supper: and one is hungry, and another
is drunken.
22 What? have ye not houses to eat and to drink
in? or despise ye the church of God, and shame
them that have not? What shall I say to you?
shall I praise you in this? I praise you not.
B. Some say that it was Bacchanal Feast.
1. A Bacchanal Feast is a drunken, debased feast held for the
Roman god, Bacchus.
2. Anytime a fertility god is being honored, there are going
to sexual wickedness of almost every kind.
3. In studying this, I came across a booking for London,
England, that you could make this year. It was in a
"Looking for what you can do while in London, England?"
article.
Feast out ancient Roman style at this opulent
five-course feast served in the Ballroom at
Islington’s The Dead Doll’s House. The banquet
pays homage to Bacchus, the infamous god of
wine and fertility, so expect decadence,
debauchery and unlimited wine and prosecco.
Book here.
POSTED: THURSDAY FEBRUARY 23 2017
https://www.timeout.com/london/things-to-do/bacchanalian-feast
4. Personally, I am not sure that even the Corinthian church
has sunk so low as to allow this to enter into their
church.
a. The reason I have doubts is not because of my
confidence in the Corinthians.
b. It is because I believe Paul would have a lot more to
say about it if they had.
C. But some measure of drunkenness and personal revelry had
crept into what was supposed to be a reverent, prayerful,
thoughtful service of remembrance.
1. Paul was saying, this should have been caught by them.
a. This is exactly what this service was given to do.
b. It is a service of self-examination.
2. And if they did not catch it, the Lord should have
instructed them and convicted them.
3. And the fact that neither of those things happened
indicates that some of the people in that church may
indeed end up being condemned with the world—not because
they are losing their salvation, but because they never
had any salvation.
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