Sermon - Lent Midweek 4 - 2018

Last week we took a journey from Genesis to Revelation. We  traveled from the tree of life in the Garden of Eden to the tree of life in heaven, and followed back again to the tree of life upon which Jesus hangs: the cross. This tree of life bears abundantly, fruit for all the nations, this fruit is Jesus’ body and blood which has been shed for the forgiveness of our sins. This is life giving fruit. This life giving fruit is communion with the body of Christ.

Today’s American culture, perhaps with much greater emphasis than most any other culture in history, is individualistic. We place an incredible focus upon each individual person being special and unique in their own fascinating manner. We consider each person to be their own unique snowflake, unlike any other person who has ever and will ever exist. 

And that’s true, each person has their own unique identity. Nevertheless, who we are as an individual is only as important as our relationships to those around us. That is to say, who we are as an individual is formed by and informs those around us. The community that we belong to is not merely consequential, but is foundational to our identity as an individual person.

To help illustrate this, consider what it’s like meeting someone for the first time. You introduce yourself by telling them your name, which includes your surname and connects you to your parents, relatives, and origins of your nationality. You tell them where you’re from, which connects you to the people in a country, a state, and a town. You say you belong to (Peace / St. Paul) Lutheran church, which connects you to the people here and all the people of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod. Who we are, is helped to be defined by those around us, by our community. 

Some communities you can choose to join, others are just given to you based upon where you were born and who you were born to. As Christians, the Lord’s Supper gives us a community. “The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ?”

When the Lord feeds you His body and blood in the Sacrament of the Altar, it is more than just a meal. As we sang a moment ago: “With Thee, Lord, I am now united; I live in Thee and Thou in me.” The Lord’s Supper is Jesus uniting Himself to us, joining us with His body and blood. The word “participation” in the translation for 1 Corinthians is a little weak, the Greek word there is actually “koinonia,” which could be translated to fellowship or communion. The picture here is of being united with Jesus, as His body and His blood comes into our bodies and becomes part of us. 

Who we are undergoes a fundamental shift in the Lord’s Supper because Jesus has made Himself part of us. Therefore, communion isn’t just about me, but it’s about Jesus who comes to me and makes me a part of Him. Our identity is defined by Jesus now. We are called Christians because we are literally little Christs, we have been made part of Him and receive the benefits of what it means to be Christ. Namely, our sins are forgiven, we are made heirs of heaven, and are declared to be holy, beloved children of God our Father.

But this continues, that’s only part of the story, it’s not just me and Jesus. “Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread.” Just as one loaf of bread is made from countless grains, so are we one body in Christ. Shall Christ’s body be divided? By no means! When you partake of the Lord’s Supper, it’s not just about you and Jesus, but it’s about the whole body of Christ coming together, which includes all of the other people partaking in the Lord’s Supper with you.

Your relationships to those people around you actually matters! They understood this in the early church. Before they received the Lord’s Supper together, they would greet one another with a holy kiss, a kiss upon the lips, recognizing that they were all one body in Christ, they had no differences. 

Now I am by no means suggesting that we should start that practice up again. However, the intention behind it is helpful for us to consider tonight, because it meant that not just anyone could receive the Lord’s Supper with them. If you had any disagreements or contentions, you’d settle it before the Lord’s Supper. If you were a stranger, you’re not going to walk in and expect to get a kiss and be welcomed to the altar - no one knows you!

Likewise today, not just anyone communes at our altars because what is taking place here is very intimate and joins us all to one another. It is declaring that we are all one body in Christ without division. Our disagreements with one another matters; we can’t just agree to disagree in matters of Theology. Paul explains: “I imply that what pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God. I do not want you to be participants with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons.”

Rather in the Lord’s Supper Jesus is uniting us to Himself and declaring that we are all one body in Him who receive our life and salvation from His body and blood alone. Thus you see that the earliest Christians “devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers… And all who believed were together and had all things in common… And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people.”

The Lord’s Supper is such a powerful and important gift for the body of Christ. We, who are many individuals with our own unique gifts and skills, are made one body as Jesus joins us together with Him in the eating and the drinking. This life giving fruit is no minor thing for the church, but it is what joins us together as a cohesive whole body. This fruit, Jesus’ body and blood, unites us with Christ for the forgiveness of our sins, and unites us with one another, praising God, to strengthen us through this veil of tears.