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The Means
of Grace – WORD AND SACRAMENTS –
Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, AMEN Main Theme: The three primary means of Gods grace are “Word and Sacraments”. Today we look at The Lord’s Supper and how grace is brought to us through the bread and wine! The Bread and wine is the visible and earthly element that represents a divine and invisible gift. We’ll look at the 1) Roman catholic View, 2) Reformed View, and 3) The Lutheran View of Communion. Why would we go to the Lord’s Supper? 1) “Because Jesus asked us to,” 2) we need the assurance of forgiveness, 3) we need to confess our faith in Christ, 4) we need the fellowship of other Christians, 5) We need communion between ourselves and Christ, and 6) it creates in us the gift of faith!
1) DEAD BODY! My friends were driving home from church one day, and couldn’t help but overhear the backseat conversation between their young daughter and her visiting cousin as they discussed communion. The night before, the parents had explained it and told the young cousin that if she understood it, she was welcome to partake of The Lord’s Supper. Now the girls were discussing the event. “So,” asked their daughter, “What did you think of Communion?” Her cousin thought for a moment and said, “The wine was good, but that waver tasted funny.” Their daughter rolled her eyes and explained, “Of course it tasted funny, it’s supposed to taste like a dead body!” Mom and Dad recognized that more education was necessary if their child was to grow into a fuller understanding of this sacrament.
2) UNDERSTAND? Confusion and misunderstanding concerning this “Christian Event” is not unusual or limited to children – I suspect that a great many adults receive God’s Grace through the gift of Holy Communion without fully understanding it! And to an extent – none of us can fully understand the divine mystery attached to such a gift, and yet the more we can comprehend, the more amazing this gift becomes. It is my prayer that our focus this morning on this precious sacrament will allow a greater and deeper experience with God every time we approach the altar and kneel to receive the body and blood of Jesus Christ through the bread and wine.
3) GOD’S GRACE! So far in this sermon series we have discussed how God’s grace comes primarily to us 1) in “the Word”, and how 2) that Word attached to water blesses us in baptism. Baptism is our first sacrament, and 3) The Lord’s supper is the second sacrament in which we Christians experience God’s grace! Whereas Baptism brings us into God’s family, (bringing us forgiveness, new life and salvation), The Lord’s Supper is how we are nourished and sanctified (that is made Holy). It is the third primary source of God’s grace!
4) COMMANDED! What makes them sacraments? Sacraments 1) are commanded - by who? That’s right - Jesus. Just as Jesus commanded his followers in The Great Commandment to go and make disciples “baptizing them”, so too, we read, (Matthew 26:26-28) “While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take and eat; this is my body." Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” This was not a “suggestion”, there was no “if you want to” or “if you feel like it” attached to the words; Jesus said “Take and eat!” and “Drink”! This was not a human invention! We call it “The Lord’s Supper” – because the Divine One instituted it! We don’t call it the “Pastor’s Supper” or the “Congregation’s Supper” - it’s The Lord’s Supper! And so faithful followers call it a sacrament and eat and drink in obedience because He commanded us to! We do so to please the Lord who saved us on the cross!
5) EARTHY/DIVINE! Secondly, sacraments 2) use “visible” or earthly elements to represent “invisible” and divine blessings. Why don’t we use pizza and beer, because that’s not what Jesus used! Agreed, today we do allow some movement there, understanding that alcohol in any amount can be dangerous to some folks, so we provide grape juice as an option because it still comes from the vine. Some non-Lutheran churches even offer water instead, because they do not believe in consuming any alcohol of any type. Never-the-less, it is not the earthly elements of bread and wine that are so special, it is the fact that Christ is present in the bread and wine! Jesus uses something very common and earthly to bring us something very uncommon in a broken world, the divine gift of God’s grace.
6) ROMAN CATHOLIC VIEW! Now, the relationship of the bread and wine to God’s blessings in this sacrament are widely debated today in Christian circles. There are 3 main understandings of what happens in Holy Communion. First there is 1) The Roman Catholic View. They use a great big word “Transubstantiation” which teaches that after the priest consecrates or blesses the bread and wine, they actually cease to be bread and wine, and by some sort of miracle turn into the body and blood of Christ. If for instance a piece of bread fell to the floor and a dog ran into the church and gulped it up, they would not be eating bread – but the body of Christ. And hence Roman Catholics go to great efforts to make sure the leftovers are disposed of in a proper way – for you are handling Christ’s blood and body!
7) THE REFORMED VIEW! On the opposite side of the spectrum is 2) The Reformed View. Many protestants, especially the non-denominational churches, believe they are merely partaking of bread and wine. They interpret Jesus’ words “This is my body” to mean “This bread represents my body.” “This wine represents my blood.” The event is merely the chance to remember what God did for them! They do not claim any supernatural “presence of Christ” in the elements.
8) THE LUTHERAN VIEW! Now the third interpretation is 3) The Lutheran View - often called a middle view. We believe that those who partake of The Lord’s Supper receive BOTH the bread and wine, AND the body and blood of Christ. But we don’t believe we are consuming actual material flesh or blood, (or we wouldn’t pour the untouched leftover wine back into the bottle or take the leftover bread home for lunch! Unlike our Roman Catholic friends, we don’t believe the bread and wine actually change into something different, but that GOD’S WORD connects the bread with Christ’s body, and connects the wine with Christ’s blood. On the other hands, unlike our Reformed friends, we believe that had Jesus meant “This bread REPRESENTS my body” or “This wine SIGNIFIES my blood” He would have said so! But Jesus’ divine and all-powerful Word declared “This IS my body”! So we eat the bread and drink the wine in a natural way, but the body and blood is consumed in a supernatural way! How does this supernatural thing work? We don’t have a clue. (No more than we can explain how Jesus walked on water, or healed the sick, or raised the dead). We are quite content to leave the mystery of how the divine connection is made to God! We are satisfied to say that some how “in, under, around, and through” the bread and wine, Christ is present and comes to us. It is not just “a remembrance” of a past event; we are receiving the actual presence of our Lord through the gift! The Lutheran View is that we receive BOTH the bread and wine, AND the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ because the Word of God said so!
9) PROMISE OF GRACE! Thirdly, we said sacraments 3) have a promise attached concerning the available heavenly grace of God! The actual love of God comes to us through this Communal Event. Grace pours down upon us every time we kneel before the Lord and receive Him through the bread and wine. I don’t know about you, but the time in the worship service when I feel closest to Jesus is during Holy Communion. I am reminded that I am not a god, that I am not the center of the universe, that I am God’s creation, that I am weak, and that I need to lean upon Him for everything. I take Him in humbly, knowing that this is an awesome gift I do not deserve nor can I ever earn. I approach the altar burdened with failure and sin. But I walk away from the feast, smiling and celebrating God’s victory over sin, Satan, and death, and ecstatic over the fact that I am now connected to that victory through His grace, assured that Christ has entered and lives within me! How strange that at one time I asked “Why should I go to The Lord’s Supper?”
10) DO THIS! How would you answer that question? You might start with 1) “Because Jesus asked us to!” He said “DO THIS in remembrance of me!” DO THIS! Why? Because it is so easy to forget! We DO THIS because if we have any understanding of what Jesus has done for us on the cross, we begin to respond to His love with Love! We look up and ask, “How can I demonstrate my love to you Lord?” and He says “DO THIS!” Even if you had no idea why He was asking you to do this – it is His will! The all-knowing, all-powerful source of love asked you to do this– and we want to, (not have to – but want to), be obedient! Why? Because it makes Him smile! And we who have been blessed beyond words by His gracious and unconditional love want to please Him! So we DO THIS out of loyalty to our Lord and Savior! Ironically, there are those who claim to be Christians and who claim to want to please Christ, but want nothing to do with the church. If it were true, they would attend church regularly to take Communion simply because God has asked them to DO THIS! And they can’t Commune alone, for reasons we’ll mention in a bit! True followers receive His body and blood when the Word connects Jesus to the bread and wine! And we DO THIS, because He asked us to!
11) ASSURANCE OF FORGIVENESS! We also kneel at the altar because 2) we need the assurance of forgiveness! That assurance comes to us in The Lord’s Supper! Remember the promise - “poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” To have our sins pardoned - blotted out – wiped off the face of the earth; that’s a true blessing! Because unforgiven sins stick to us like soot sticks to a chimney – building up until it ignites and destroys us in a great blaze! Each sin weighs us down until we can carry no more and are unable to move forward in our life as God intended! Each sin is like an anchor that we throw behind us in an attempt to ignore it and sail on, but soon the chains are many and all progress stops! Sin is suffocating and prevents us from experiencing true life! But at the altar, as we eat and drink the Lord in, as we are reminded of the blood that dripped from His back, hands, and feet, as we reflect on the pain and suffering His body took under the whip and beatings – we hear again the assuring words “poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins!” We attend the Lord’s Supper for that assurance of forgiveness, which we learned last week brings us new life and salvation!
12) CONFESS OUR FAITH! We also partake in this blessed event because 3) we need to confess our faith in Christ! We need to confess our faith in the Christ that saved us and who is going to return! 1st Corinthians (11:26) tells us “For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.” The Greek word which is interpreted here as proclaim, can also be interpreted as “show” or “confess”! And we confess our faith before other people! When we commune we are stating “I am a Christian!” And we are unashamedly trusting in Jesus Christ for our salvation! And we’re testifying before the world that those we Commune with, are one in the faith! Our participation in The Lord’s Supper gives us one more opportunity to confess Jesus before our fellow man! It is another reason we should Commune regularly and frequently!
13) FELLOWSHIP! And speaking of our unity as one in the faith, we commune because 4) we need the fellowship of other Christians! Paul tells the Corinthians and us (1st Cor. 10:17) “Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf.” The Lord’s Supper is often called Holy Communion because it does not take place alone! We commune with one another. It is a meal for the family of God! It is a meal where rich and poor, dark and light skin, old and young… all kneel before God as equals: sinners receiving what we do not deserve - as a gift of grace. We do not kneel as individuals but as a fellowship - a family! God clearly knows we cannot be Christians alone! Even when I take communion to a shut-in, the service used reminds them that as a family we communed together on Sunday and we share that same blessed gift with them now! I prefer to have other members there but if none are available I represent the family to them myself! Like a great thanksgiving day feast, the Holy One who brought us into His family through baptism, now regularly calls us, His children, to the table because there His beloved family gets the opportunity to share themselves with one another, and eat of the same feast! The one who designed us knows that we need the fellowship of other Christians! At the table we get it!
14) COMMUNION WITH CHRIST! Naturally, 5) we need communion between ourselves and Christ! And it’s a kind of communion we cannot experience elsewhere! God mysteriously imparts His body and blood into us in a way we cannot fully understand - but once we have tasted it, we want more! Countless people who have returned to the church after many years away, explain that something was missing in their lives! Once they knelt at the altar, often in tears, they knew what it was: communion with Christ! I believe that God created the human heart with a hole in it that only He could fill! In as much as we often try to fill it with money, power, fame, busyness, etc… we remained hungry! For at this unique table God feeds us with a spiritual food that is… well, Himself! At the railing we are nourished again – as He touches us in a way that words will never capture! We receive only a fortaste of the feast to come, but as we wait for that day when He will return again, that fortaste is enough! It is a Holy meal that keeps us going – because the Lord Himself comes to us in both a physical way (a way that allows us to touch and taste through the bread and wine), and in a spiritual way that fills our heart with His very essence! We are made whole as we commune with Christ!
15) CREATES FAITH! And finally, we need to commune because 6) it creates in us the gift of faith! His Spirit enters in and creates and sustains faith within us! It is a meal that changes us! Transforms us! Every meal empowers us to become more and more Christ-like each and every day! There were times when it was only practiced once or twice a year – claiming that to commune more often would water down its importance. It’s as if people were claiming that their faith was so strong, they could go long periods of time without needing the grace found in this gift! For Matthew Kling’s sake, who is confirming His faith today, I give thanks that The Lord’s Supper is available to him weekly! Why? Because Communion creates faith in us! Matthew won’t kneel at this railing to participate in the feast thinking it is dependant upon his faith, it depends strictly on Christ’s promises! That’s why we commune children – it is a gift of pure grace! God doesn’t want something from Matthew in this meal, He wants something FOR Matthew – and He freely gives it! Fact is, Matthew’s faith, my faith, your faith will never be pure or wholly sincere! If receiving Holy Communion depended on our faith, this would not be a meal of assurance and joy but one of anxiety and fear! The validity of The Lord’s Supper does not depend on the faith of the recipient; rather the recipient’s faith is the GOAL of this sacrament! It creates in us the gift of faith!
16) AMOUNT/KIND? Now some loose ends. First, just as the amount and kind of water are irrelevant in Baptism, so is the amount and kind of bread and wine in the Lord’s supper irrelevant. When I interviewed here 12 years ago someone asked me a loaded question, “Do you prefer wafers or real bread?” I wisely answered “Yes!” And so we have wavers one week and real bread the other, not only to keep everyone happy, but to make clear it is not the kind or amount of bread, but the Word of God connecting it to His body and blood in a mysterious but life-giving way!
17) SOMETIMES! Sometimes Communion is received kneeling at the altar, sometimes standing up, other times it is passed down the isles and given to one another! One way is not Holier than the other ways. They are just different. And when you attend other churches, please do not judge. Jesus said DO THIS – and they are! (But remember), sometimes churches will only allow members of their church’s denomination to partake in Communion – so ask first when visiting another denomination. ELCA Lutherans believe The Lord’s Supper is the privilege of the Baptized – and ALL who believe in Jesus Christ are welcome to the feast!
18) WORD! Can you imagine this world and your life if God never broke in and poured out His grace upon us? It would be hell on earth – and for some who choose to walk alone, without God, it is! But that is NOT God’s will! He brings you His love unconditionally that you and I might bask in His grace! Through His Word that grace flows down! Through His Word in your baptism – (an ongoing daily process), you enter into His family, receiving forgiveness, new life, salvation, a and purpose! And today through this meal Jesus comes once again to you that you might receive the visible, touchable, edible Word of God’s love for you!
19) FORGIVENESS! Friends, Christ reminds us now that while the Lord’s Supper is not the only way to receive divine forgiveness, it is a very special way! And every time He invites us to participate in this eating and drinking, you and I receive the gift of forgiveness! And forgiveness always brings spiritual life on this earth, eternal life in heaven, rescue from sin, Satan, and death, and communion with God and one another! Through His Words “Given and poured out for you for the forgiveness of sins” comes life and salvation. For where there is the forgiveness of sins, there is always new life and salvation! Praise God! AMEN!
Opening prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, just as you welcomed us into your beloved family through our baptism, today we gather again to commune with you and one another! We come to be nourished by your Word and to receive your blessings that pour into us when we gather at your table to receive the bread and wine that connect us to your body and blood – given freely that we might have new life and salvation! Even though we come with heavy and sinful hearts, we eagerly anticipate your washing us clean. Even though we come wounded by the brokenness in our world, we reach up to receive your healing and renewal. Even though confusion and anxiety may have entered our hearts and minds this week, we anticipate hearing your life-giving Word that brings us clarity, purpose, and the power to keep moving on! As we praise you for the unconditional love you pour down upon us, draw us ever closer to your heart! Let us experience the joy and hope and love that you so eagerly desire to give us! And create within us the faith that only you can give; the faith that brings us new life! Help to become more and more Christ-like each and every day! And teach us to reflect our Lord’s gentle love to those we meet in this next week! In Jesus Name we pray, AMEN
Sermon/Confessional Prayer:
Dear Heavenly Father, we have too often received your sacrament of Holy Communion without reflecting upon the miracle that takes place. Many of us do not come regularly to receive the gifts of grace awaiting us at your table. We have not obediently followed your instructions – and go without the assurance of forgiveness. Too often we fail to confess our faith in you to the world by our participation in your supper! Forgive us, and feed the hunger within our hearts with the spiritual food that gives us new life!
Lord, too often we try to be a Christian alone; thinking we can be a disciple without the rest of our church family! We have often failed to see the need to commune with other Christians. We often fail to commune with you regularly and sincerely, and miss out on the gift of being nourished and forgiven. Forgive our desire for independence, and teach us to trust, love, and obey your will for us! Help us surrender our lives completely to you that we may faithfully follow you – and serve those whom you love!!
And now Lord, although you know us better than we know ourselves, listen as we share in a moment of silence, those other parts of our lives that need to be forgiven, washed clean, healed, and recommitted to you! (made anew.)
(Silence) Lord, through the miracle of Holy Communion you nourish us at your table, forgive our sins, create faith within us, and bring us new life! Continue to draw us closer to you, fill us with your Holy Spirit, teach us to join together as your faithful family, and empower us to follow and imitate you as we seek to fulfill your mission to a hurting and broken world! AMEN
Assurance of Forgiveness: Friends, listen to the good news: The Lord, who brings you Himself in the “Bread and Wine”, …that Lord has mercifully heard your confession and eagerly forgives you all your sins. Go now, knowing that the grace you seek that is life-giving is found in the Lord, who eagerly makes Himself available to you through the Bread and Wine. Receive Him regularly and reverently, and share the spiritual benefits with all you meet! In Jesus Name we pray! AMEN
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