The Lord's Supper Vol. 10--- Relationships
In Post #4 of this series, I made the statement:
WE CAN NOT SEPARATE OUR RELATIONSHIPS WITH EACH OTHER FROM OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD.
That statement probably needs some dressing and addressing.
Much of the Old Testament law had to do with how we treat each other. Specific acts were given specific consequences or punishment. When Jesus began to preach, though, he concentrated on the heart issues underlying how we treat each other, and not just the function. A check list of the proper activities done in the proper way was not going to suffice any more. We are called to Jesus' view of what is important:
"Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself."--------- This fulfills all the Law and the Prophets. How we treat God and how we treat men arises out of that love, and a great deal of the teachings of Christ have to do with how we relate to each other.
So what does this have to do with the Lord's Supper?
Maybe everything.
If we live and exist as a church forgiven, a church blessed by God, a church having a deep relationship with him, we are also called to be his instruments of that forgiveness, blessing and relationship to those around us. The Passover meal was not just a reminder, but also a way to build close relationships. Like the Lord's Supper, it was to be shared in a group, not taken alone. Something special happens when we let someone else into our personal space and allow communion there--we give ourselves to be instruments of God. We become more like him, more one with him, more a part of him. We allow others to be less lonely, less isolated, more connected. Something deep and powerful happens to me every time I look into the eyes of a brother or sister and share the body and blood of Jesus with them, because at that moment I become one body with her or him. God has known since he created me that I needed just that--- intimacy with him and those around me. I am not designed to live as a Christian on my own, and no one else is, either. Thus comes Paul's warning to the Church at Corinth: To take the Lord's Supper selfishly is to deny its very design and refuse to be an instrument of God, because we are called to be a single body. I can not claim intimacy with God while rejecting intimacy with my brothers and sisters who are "one" with him through Jesus. The communion meal creates an opportunity for me to interact with the Lord and his body very, very personally, a chance to give and receive the blessings of God and be witnesses to others giving and receiving those blessings.
Our communion creates a way for us to learn to commune with each other, but I must choose how much I interact with the family of God. I can let it happen, or prevent it from happening. What do I miss when I take the Lord's Supper in silence and introspection, never even noticing the body around me?
I think I miss the close relationships he had planned for me, and the rich friendships he wants for me, and the intimacy he desires from me. I think I miss the power of the living God flowing between me and his family.
Is the Lord's Supper the only way to approach an intimacy with God and my brothers and sisters? Obviously, it is not. But it is a way to open that door and break the ice between us, a way designed by God for us to be his instruments to each other, to become more like him and more one with him. And the more I communicate while I "commune", the stronger the Spirit's working in that meal seems to be. I am finding it more and more true that my relationships with the brothers and sisters are very important in my relationship with God.
WE CAN NOT SEPARATE OUR RELATIONSHIPS WITH EACH OTHER FROM OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD.
That statement probably needs some dressing and addressing.
Much of the Old Testament law had to do with how we treat each other. Specific acts were given specific consequences or punishment. When Jesus began to preach, though, he concentrated on the heart issues underlying how we treat each other, and not just the function. A check list of the proper activities done in the proper way was not going to suffice any more. We are called to Jesus' view of what is important:
"Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself."--------- This fulfills all the Law and the Prophets. How we treat God and how we treat men arises out of that love, and a great deal of the teachings of Christ have to do with how we relate to each other.
So what does this have to do with the Lord's Supper?
Maybe everything.
If we live and exist as a church forgiven, a church blessed by God, a church having a deep relationship with him, we are also called to be his instruments of that forgiveness, blessing and relationship to those around us. The Passover meal was not just a reminder, but also a way to build close relationships. Like the Lord's Supper, it was to be shared in a group, not taken alone. Something special happens when we let someone else into our personal space and allow communion there--we give ourselves to be instruments of God. We become more like him, more one with him, more a part of him. We allow others to be less lonely, less isolated, more connected. Something deep and powerful happens to me every time I look into the eyes of a brother or sister and share the body and blood of Jesus with them, because at that moment I become one body with her or him. God has known since he created me that I needed just that--- intimacy with him and those around me. I am not designed to live as a Christian on my own, and no one else is, either. Thus comes Paul's warning to the Church at Corinth: To take the Lord's Supper selfishly is to deny its very design and refuse to be an instrument of God, because we are called to be a single body. I can not claim intimacy with God while rejecting intimacy with my brothers and sisters who are "one" with him through Jesus. The communion meal creates an opportunity for me to interact with the Lord and his body very, very personally, a chance to give and receive the blessings of God and be witnesses to others giving and receiving those blessings.
Our communion creates a way for us to learn to commune with each other, but I must choose how much I interact with the family of God. I can let it happen, or prevent it from happening. What do I miss when I take the Lord's Supper in silence and introspection, never even noticing the body around me?
I think I miss the close relationships he had planned for me, and the rich friendships he wants for me, and the intimacy he desires from me. I think I miss the power of the living God flowing between me and his family.
Is the Lord's Supper the only way to approach an intimacy with God and my brothers and sisters? Obviously, it is not. But it is a way to open that door and break the ice between us, a way designed by God for us to be his instruments to each other, to become more like him and more one with him. And the more I communicate while I "commune", the stronger the Spirit's working in that meal seems to be. I am finding it more and more true that my relationships with the brothers and sisters are very important in my relationship with God.
posted by G'ampa C @ 6:19 AM
1 Comments:
At 7:26 PM,
pawatson said…
Calvin, I have saved your blogs to a word document and will be taking them with me to Kentucky. I will have time on the plane and while I am at my parent's house to read and reflect on what you have written. I plan to share them with our minister there, also. Thank you for your loving servant heart. I love you, brother.
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