GOD THAT GIVES LIFE PART 4
Our theme is taken from 1Tim 6:13 and it says “God that quickeneth all things.”
In the previous messages, we have looked at quickening through His miraculous power, quickening by the Spirit and Quickening by the word. I will be discussing in this part 4; quickening through the holy communion.
There were problems in Corinth church where common meals were mixed up with the Lord’s supper. They did not come together to eat the Lord’s Supper exclusively, which they should have done, and not have made it a part of an ordinary meal.
Paul wrote to correct this. From 1 Cor verse 20-22
1Cor 11:23-29 KJV 23 For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread: 24 And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. 25 After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. 26 For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death till he comes. 27 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. 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. 29 For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.
Paul said he delivered what he had received by revelation from the Lord Himself. He was not there when the event happened in the upper room in Jerusalem.
This is how Mathew reported it
Mat 26:26 KJV And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.
This is how Mark reported it
Mar 14:22 KJV And as they did eat, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and brake it, and gave to them, and said, Take, eat: this is my body.
And this is how Luke reported it.
Luk 22:19 -20 KJV And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. 20 Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.
When you compare the gospels, it gives more understanding and what is left out by one is accounted for by the other. Here Luke was very close to the heart of the matter. However, he says, “this is my body that is given for you, this do in remembrance of me.”
When He said “this do in remembrance of me.” Paul, who was not there at that time got his revelation directly from the Lord and he added some facts that the evangelists did not mention.
When he says this do in remembrance of me, Paul said in verse 26
1Cor 11:26 KJV For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death till he come. The Greek word for “ye do shew” is “kataggello.” It means to announce, declare, promulgate, make known, to proclaim publicly, publish, to preach, shew, speak of, teach.
What this means is that the event that took place was real otherwise He wouldn’t have instituted the memorials. He did suffer for mankind.
ye preach,—ye declare the Lord’s death, ye assure the world of the truth of it,—it appears that the sacrament of the supper was instituted, not only to bring Christ’s sufferings, and the happy consequences thereof, to the remembrance of his disciples, but to demonstrate the truth of these things to the world in all age. An impostor would not have asked people or disciples to commemorate it.
Purpose of the sacraments:
After breaking the bread, He said this is my body that is broken for you. It was a symbolic demonstration and prophetic. His body was broken when they beat Him with stripes, crowned with thorns, nailed his hands and legs and pierced his side with a javelin.
Why was His body broken like this? He said it was for you. The Greek word used is “huper” it means: instead of, for your sake, and on behalf of. In order words, it is our bodies that are supposed to be broken, but His was broken so that ours will not be broken.
Today bodies are broken through sickness and diseases, poverty, psychological torture, wrong mental health and afflictions of mind and soul. But the Lord’s body was broken to avert, prevent and possibly remedy all these.
The Blood
Covenants are ratified by blood so also the shedding of the blood ratified the New Covenant we are in. A better covenant established on better promises.
The blood was shed for the remission of sin. Remission is not the same as forgiveness even though most of our translation mixes them up. Remission is what the sinners need when coming to the faith and forgiveness is what the Christian needs when he makes mistakes.
Problem in the church.
1Cor 11:27-30 KJV 27 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. 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. 29 For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. 30 For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.
Paul does not say, “Let a man examine himself, and then not eat or drink at the communion.” The examination should lead him to repentance, and to faith, and should then bring him to the table of fellowship in the right state of mind and heart.
The problems were that they were eating and drinking the sacraments unworthily. What does the Bible mean by unworthily? This statement has made many Church members to abstain from communion because they felt unworthy.
Let me quickly say that none of us is worthy in ourselves to partake in anything with the Lord. But when we became born again, He made us worthy and qualified. It is by grace we are saved.
Most persons interpret it as if it were “unworthy,” and not “unworthily,” and seem to suppose that it refers to their personal qualifications, to their “unfitness” to partake of it, rather than to the manner in which it is done.
It is to be remembered, therefore. that the word used here is an “adverb,” and not an “adjective,” and has reference to the manner of observing the ordinance, and not to their personal qualifications or fitness
The term “unworthily” is “anaxio”. it means properly “in an unworthy or improper” manner “in a manner unsuitable to the purposes for which it was designed or instituted;”
But what they are talking about unworthily, it is talking about “irreverently” This word is “anaxios” and it only appeared twice in KJV’ In verse 11 and 29. So, allowing the Bible to comment on itself will help us to define the word “unworthily.”
Verse 29
1Cor 11:29 KJV For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.
He said that anyone who eateth and drinketh unworthily did damnation unto himself because he did not discern the Lord’s body. The word “discern” is “diakrino” and it means to make distinction, separation and difference.
Isaiah prophesied His death. He said, “He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquity. The chastisement of our peace is upon Him, and with His stripes we are healed” ( Isa 53:5 ).
So through the broken body of Christ we were healed. He suffered for us. So that he who eats of the body of Christ not discerning the Lord’s body does not take and receive that healing provided for through the suffering of Jesus. And for this cause a lot of people are sick, a lot of people are weak; some have even died.
You could have been healed if you had only appropriated the work of Jesus Christ. But they did not discern the Lord’s body when they took the broken bread.
This is the explanation they were able to know that the blood was shed for the remission of sins but were unable to know what the bread they were partaking was meant for.
Consequence:
The consequence is in verse, many were weak, sickly and died because they didn’t discern the Lord’s body. They didn’t take advantage of what was given unto them as Luke put it. Luke says this is my body that is given “for” you. This is one of the advantages we have as New Testament people. His body was broken so that we will not be weak and sickly but strong all our days.
The passover was the commemoration of the departure of the children of Israel from Egypt and that night they ate their meal in a hurry. Because of that one meal, look at what the Bible says hundreds of years later.
Psa 105:37 KJV He brought them forth also with silver and gold: and there was not one feeble person among their tribes.
The word “feeble” is “kashal” in Hebrew, it means: to totter or waver (through weakness of the legs, especially the ankle); by implication to falter, stumble, faint or fall: – bereave, cast down, be decayed.
All of them were strong, able and fit for the journey. There was none with the diseases of Egypt among them.
Anytime we partake of communion, we announce to the world, devil and ourselves that this is what the Lord suffered for therefore i will not suffer for it again. That will be double jeopardy. My body shall not be broken, my mind, health, relationship, business and destiny. His body was broken for me.
When we partake of it, it quickens our body, if it needs repair, it repairs it, rejuvenates and there is no better time than this easter time.
When you partake in faith, it quickens your mind and Godly ideas start flowing
When you partake, it sets fire in your bone, burn out weakness and dislodge the devils occupying and residing illegally in your body. Because it is a weapon. Take it as a weapon that by this bread and communion wine, I dislodge evil from my life. Sometime Doctors give us medicine to detoxify and expel unwanted things from our bodies. The communion does the same, you will vomit them out. Whatever the devil has planted inside your body shall be expel by fire.