Worship and the Lord’s Supper JESUS AND PAULS DIFFERENTSIS.

MATTHEW 26:26-30 JESUS WITH THE DISCIPLES

1 Corinthians 11:17-34 PAUL’S CORRECTION OF THE Institution of the Lord’s Supper

JESUS AND PAULS DIFFERENTSIS.

JESUS~

29 But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.”

Jesus looked forward to a future celebration of the Passover in heaven, one that He has not yet celebrated with His people. He is waiting for all His people to be gathered to Him, and then there will be a great supper — The marriage supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:9). This is the fulfillment in My Father’s kingdom that Jesus longed for.

30 And when they had sung a hymn,

We don’t often think of Jesus singing, but He did. He lifted His voice in adoration and worship to God the Father.

“No sweeter singing, no mightier music ever sounded amid the darkness of the sad world’s night than the singing of Jesus and His first disciples, as they moved out to the Cross of His Passion, and their redemption.” (Morgan)

They went out to the Mount of Olives. TO PRAY. / The Garden of Gethsemane SEE MATTHEW 26:30 / Mark 14:32

The Mount of Olives is part of a mountain range that separates Jerusalem from the Judaean desert. This particular “mountain” is the central peak, and resembles a large rocky hill. It was once a place of many olive trees.

The Garden of Gethsemane is a garden that sits at the base of the Mount of Olives. The name literally means “oil press” and is another reference to the presence of olive trees in the area.

To answer the question, after the Last Supper, Jesus and his disciples walked to the Mount of Olives, and more specifically, the Garden of Gethsemane which sits at its base.

PAUL’S~

CORRECTS THERTE CONDUCT 1 Corinthians 11:17-22

divisions among you,

For there must also be factions/ heresies among you, that those who are approved may be recognized among you. THE LEADERS WERE CREATING DIVISIONS IN THE CHURCH BY TEACHING HERESIES SO, THEY CAN BE RECOGNIZED.

Gal 5:20 AND

2Pe 2:1

For in eating, each one takes his own supper ahead of others, and one is hungry and another is drunk.

NOT DOING IT AT THE SAME TIME BECAUSE OF CULTURE, THE UPPER CLASS ATE AND DRANK FIRST AND IT WAS NOT COMMON FOR THE CORINTHIAN CHRISTIANS.

26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.

In the Lord’s Supper, the apostle Paul tells us, we ‘proclaim the Lord’s death till he comes’; that is, as long as the world lasts, and in the prospect of Jesus’ return, we proclaim the death that gave us life. THE BIBLE SAYS WE ARE HIS WORKMANSHIP AND A LIVING EPISTAL, A LIVING SACRIFICE. We proclaim the Savior who, having conquered sin and death, rose from the grave to give everlasting life to all who believe in him.

Examine Yourself V27-30

27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.

28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.

29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.

30 For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep.

IT’S OUR RESPONSIBILITY V31-34

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MATTHEW 26:26-30

Jesus Institutes the Lord’s Supper

(Mark 14:22–26; Luke 22:14–23; 1 Cor. 11:23–26 )

26 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed[fn] and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.”

27 Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you.

28 For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

29 But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.”

30 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

1 Corinthians 11:17-34

Conduct at the Lord’s Supper

17 Now in giving these instructions I do not praise you, since you come together not for the better but for the worse.

18 For first of all, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you, and in part, I believe it.

19 For there must also be factions among you, that those who are approved may be recognized among you.

20 Therefore when you come together in one place, it is not to eat the Lord’s Supper.

21 For in eating, each one takes his own supper ahead of others, and one is hungry and another is drunk. 22 What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you in this? I do not praise you.

Institution of the Lord’s Supper

(Matt. 26:26–29; Mark 14:22–25; Luke 22:14–23)

23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread;

24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”

25 In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.”

26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.

Examine Yourself

27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.

28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.

29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.

30 For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep.

IT’S OUR RESPONSABILITY

31 For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world.

33 Therefore, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another.

34 But if anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, lest you come together for judgment. And the rest I will set in order when I come.

COMMENTARY!

CONCERNING THE LORD’S SUPPER

David Guzik: Study Guide for 1 Corinthians 11

2. (1 Corinthians 11:20-22) The bad conduct of the Corinthian Christians at their common meal.

Therefore, when you come together in one place, it is not to eat the Lord’s Supper. For in eating, each one takes his own supper ahead of others; and one is hungry and another is drunk. What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you for this? I do not praise you.

a. When you come together in one place: In this, Paul refers to the early church custom of combining the love feast (like a shared-dish supper) and the Lord’s Supper.

i. Because the risen Jesus so often ate with His disciples, it made sense to the early church that eating together went together with celebrating the Lord’s Supper.

b. Each one takes his own supper ahead of the others, and one is hungry and another is drunk: Sadly, the Corinthian Christians acted selfishly at their common meals. Their selfish conduct at the common meal disgraced their observance of the Lord’s Supper.

i. In the modern church, the Lord’s Supper is commonly celebrated in an atmosphere of dignity. But the Corinthian Christians came from a culture where the pagans commonly had wild, riotous banquets given in honor of a pagan god. This is how it might not seem so strange to the Corinthian Christians to even get drunk at a church’s common meal.

c. One takes his supper ahead of the others… one is hungry: Why would some be hungry at the church common meals? Because among the Corinthian Christians, some were wealthier than others, and the poorer ones were being neglected (Or do you… shame those who have nothing?).

i. On that day, at common meals, it was expected that the “upper class” would receive better and more food than the “lower class.” This cultural custom was carried over into the church, and the Christians weren’t really sharing with one another. At the agape feast, the rich brought more food and the poor brought less food; but in Corinth, they were not sharing the food fairly.

ii. Ancient culture, much more than modern American culture, was extremely class-conscious. It was the respect of these class divisions that grieved Paul so much.

iii. Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God: Paul’s message is both strong and plain - “If you want to eat or drink selfishly, do it at home!”

d. Shall I praise you in this? I do not praise you: Using repetition, Paul makes it clear: I do not praise you is repeated three times in this brief section. The apostle is not happy with the Corinthian Christians at this point.

3. (1 Corinthians 11:23-26) How to conduct the true Lord’s Supper.

For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” In the same manner, He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.

a. For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: Paul didn’t just make this up, he received it from the Lord. It came to him from the Lord either personally or through the other apostles.

i. “Some think that Paul received this from the Lord by immediate revelation… Others think that he received it from St. Luke’s writings (for the words are quoted according to his Gospel). Others think he received it from some other of the apostles. Certain it is, that he did receive it from the Lord; how, is uncertain.” (Poole)

b. On the same night in which He was betrayed: Paul, in remembering the events of the night before Jesus’ crucifixion, recalls that Jesus was not only executed by a foreign power, He was betrayed by His own.

c. And when He had given thanks: In theology, and in church custom, the Lord’s Supper is often called the eucharist. This word comes from the ancient Greek phrase used here for giving thanks.

d. He broke it and said: In conducting a communion service, Paul puts the emphasis on remembering Jesus, on what He said about the meaning of His own death for us.

i. We remember the Last Supper was actually a Passover meal, when Jesus, together with the disciples, according to Biblical commands and Jewish traditions, celebrated the remembrance of Israel’s deliverance from Egypt to the Promised Land, beginning in the book of Exodus.

ii. The breaking of bread and the drinking of wine were important parts of the Passover celebration. Jesus took these important pictures and reminders of Israel’s deliverance from Egypt, and added to them the meanings connected with His own death on the cross for us.

e. This is My body: In taking the bread, we are called to remember Jesus’ body broken for us. The Passover meal featured unleavened bread, made without yeast both because yeast is a picture of sin and corruption in the Bible, and because in bread, yeast needs time to work – and in their haste to leave Egypt, the Israelites had no time to let their bread rise.

i. The unleavened bread used at a Passover meal had the scorch-mark “stripes” and holes from baking that looked like “pierce” marks. In the same way, the body of Jesus was broken for us. He was without sin (as the bread had no leaven), and His body bore stripes and was pierced (as the bread appeared to be).

ii. The Puritan commentator Matthew Poole found it meaningful that Paul used the terms bread and cup, and not the words body and blood. “From hence it appears, that the bread and wine are not (as papists say) transubstantiated, or turned into the very substance of the flesh and blood of Christ when the communicants eat it and drink it. It is still the same bread and cup it was.”

f. This cup is the new covenant in My blood: In receiving the cup, we are called to remember the blood of Jesus and the new covenant. The Passover meal featured several cups of wine, each with a different title. The cup Jesus referred to was known as the cup of redemption, and Jesus added to the idea of redemption from slavery in Egypt the idea that His blood confirmed a new covenant that changed our relationship with God.

i. What mere man could have the audacity to institute a new covenant between God and man? But here, Jesus founds a new covenant, sealed with blood, even as the old covenant was sealed with blood (Exodus 24:8).

ii. What is the new covenant all about?

It is about an inner transformation, that cleanses us from all sin: For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more (Jeremiah 31:34).

It is about God’s Word and will in us: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts (Jeremiah 31:33).

It is about a new, close, relationship with God: I will be their God, and they shall be My people (Jeremiah 31:33).

iii. Because of what Jesus did on the cross, we can have a new covenant relationship with God. But many Christians live as if there is no inner transformation. They live as if there is no cleansing from sin. They live as if there is no word and will of God in our hearts. They live as if there is no new and close relationship with God.

g. You proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes: While the Lord’s Supper does look back to what Jesus did on the cross, it also looks forward to the coming of Jesus and the marriage supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:9).

i. In Matthew 26:29, Jesus spoke of His longing expectation for the day when He would take communion with His people in heaven, which is the ultimate Lord’s Supper.

h. You eat this bread and drink this cup: The precise nature of the bread and the cup in communion has been the source of great theological controversy.

i. The Roman Catholic Church holds the idea of transubstantiation, teaching that the bread and the wine actually become the body and blood of Jesus.

ii. Martin Luther held the idea of consubstantiation, teaching the bread remains bread and the wine remains wine, but by faith they are the same as Jesus’ actual body. Luther did not believe in the Roman Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation, but he did not go far from it.

iii. John Calvin taught that Jesus’ presence in the bread and wine was real but only spiritual, not physical. Zwingli taught that bread and wine are mere symbols that represent the body and blood of Jesus. When the Swiss Reformers debated the issue with Martin Luther at Marburg, there was a huge contention. Luther insisted on some kind of physical presence because Jesus said this is My body. He insisted over and over again, writing it on the velvet of the table, Hoc est corpus Meum – “this is My body” in Latin.

Zwingli replied, “Jesus also said I am the vine,” and “I am the door,” but we understand what He was saying. Luther replied, “I don’t know, but if Christ told me to eat dung I would do it knowing that it was good for me.” Luther was so strong on this because he saw it as an issue of believing Christ’s words, and because he thought Zwingli was compromising, he said he was of another spirit (andere geist).

iv. Scripturally, we can understand that the bread and the wine are not mere symbols, but they are powerful pictures to partake of and to enter into as we see the Lord’s Supper as the new Passover.

i. You proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes: Proclaim is the same word translated as “preach” in other places. When we take communion, we preach a sermon to God Himself, to the Devil and all his allies, and to the world who watches.

i. “As you break bread and bow your heart before Him, what sort of sermon are you preaching? Often, we have broken bread together around the Lord’s table, and then we have gone out to do just what those disciples did - we have denied Him.” (Redpath)

4. (1 Corinthians 11:27-28) How to prepare your conduct in receiving the Lord’s Supper.

Therefore, whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.

a. Whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord: Paul warns the Corinthian Christians to treat the Lord’s Supper with reverence, and to practice it in a spirit of self-examination. However, this is not written with the thought of excluding ourselves from the table, but of preparing us to receive with the right heart.

i. The King James Version of 1 Corinthians 11:27 has caused some misunderstanding in this regard: Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. The word unworthily has made some Christians believe they have to “make themselves worthy” to receive communion, or if they have sinned, they were unworthy to come and remember what Jesus did on the cross for them.

ii. This is a serious misunderstanding because if anyone needs to remember the work of Jesus on the cross, it is the one who has sinned! When we are repentant, our sins should drive us to our Savior, not away from Him. However, if a Christian is in sin, and stubbornly unrepentant, they are mocking what Jesus did on the cross to cleanse them from their sin.

iii. We can never really make ourselves “worthy” of what Jesus did for us on the cross. He did it because of His great love, not because some of us were so worthy. As we take the bread and cup, we should not stare at the floor or struggle to achieve some sort of spiritual feeling. We should simply open our hearts to Jesus and recognize His presence with us – in fact, in us!

b. Let a man examine himself: Again, not in a morbid display of self-checking to see if we are worthy of what Jesus did for us; but in an honest appraisal to see if, as we receive communion, we are conducting ourselves in a way honoring to the Lord.

i. The idea is plain: examine yourself, but then let him eat of that bread and drink of that cup. The idea is not to keep people away from the table of communion but to prepare them to receive it in the right way.

5. (1 Corinthians 11:29-32) The potential results of being guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.

For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. For this reason, many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world.

a. Eats and drinks judgment to himself: Irreverent conduct at the Lord’s Supper invites God’s corrective discipline; so, we should judge ourselves so we would not be judged. If we will discipline ourselves, the Lord will not need to with His hand of correction.

i. The words “not discerning the Lord’s body” are used by Roman Catholics to support their doctrine of transubstantiation. Their thinking is, “See, the Corinthians did not understand they were actually receiving the real body and the real blood of Jesus, and that is why they were guilty.” But this is a very narrow foundation that a huge building has been built upon. It is just as easy – and just as valid – to see the Lord’s body as a reference to the church family, and it was the lack of respect and love for the church family that caused the problems of selfishness among the Corinthian Christians.

b. For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep: The judgment is significant. Evidently, among the Corinthian Christians, some experienced illness, and some had even died as a result of God’s corrective discipline.

i. In writing eats and drinks judgment, Paul does not refer to eternal judgment, but to corrective judgment. There is no article “the” before “judgment,” so it is not the judgment. This chastening is not a judge condemning a criminal; it is a father correcting disobedient children.

ii. As mentioned in 1 John 5:16, there is sin leading to death, and Ananias and Saphira in Acts 5 seem to be examples of this. Apparently, a believer can sin to the point where God believes it is just best to bring them home, probably because they have in some way compromised their testimony so significantly that they should just come on home to God.

iii. However, it is certainly presumptuous to think this about every case of an untimely death of a believer or to use it as an enticement to suicide for the guilt-ridden Christian. Our lives are in God’s hands, and if He sees fit to bring one of His children home, that is fine.

c. We are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world: This makes it clear Paul knew none of the Corinthian Christians, even those who died as a result of God’s corrective judgment, had lost their salvation. They were chastened so that they would not be condemned by the world.

6. (1 Corinthians 11:33-34) Summary: how to act at the church common meal.

Therefore, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. But if anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, lest you come together for judgment. And the rest I will set in order when I come.

a. Wait for one another: It isn’t just good manners; it shows love towards others. If you wait for one another, then everyone gets enough to eat, instead of some being gorged and others going home hungry.

b. If anyone is hungry, let him eat at home: Don’t “pig out” at the church common meal, because it might mean someone else doesn’t get enough to eat. If you are that hungry, eat at home!

c. Lest you come together for judgment: Because of this simple selfishness, the Corinthian Christians brought the judgment of God upon themselves, just for the sake of food! Paul wants to put it all in perspective and remind them that it isn’t worth it at all.

d. And the rest I will set in order when I come: Paul knows he isn’t dealing with the whole issue here. There is more to say, but Paul will leave it for another time. Wouldn’t we love to know all that is behind these words, what the rest of it was about?