Greetings in the Name of Christ Jesus.
The Epistle for service this evening is 1 Corinthians 11:23-32, which reads as follows:
"23For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, 24and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, "This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me." 25In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me." 26For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
27 Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. 28 Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. 30That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. 31 But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged. 32But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world."
St. Paul's words to start this section are worthy of note - For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you. There is a movement - Christ provides the things which we deliver. The same pattern is what holds true in the Church today. The Church distributes what it has received from Christ. Is there preaching? Let it be the preaching of Christ. Is there Baptism? Let it be baptism as instituted by our Lord. Is there a Supper? Let it be the Supper which our has given.
As Christians we are not highly creative. We don't need to make stuff up, we don't try to be cutting edge -- rather, we pass on and proclaim what Christ has given and proclaimed unto us. And why? Because all power, all strength, all forgiveness comes from Christ and His gifts. Our job is not to improve upon what Christ has done, but with awe and reverence to learn more and the wonders of what He has done for us.
Note the seriousness with which St. Paul addresses the Supper - how he directs us to ponder the Supper and the wonder that we indeed receive Christ's very Body and Blood for the forgiveness of our sins. We don't need to do anything new to the Supper to improve it or make it more effective - rather, we are to simply hear and believe what God Himself says of it in His Word and act accordingly.
The things of the Church are in truth the things of Christ - and if they are not of Christ, if they do not proclaim Christ and Him Crucified, then they don't belong in Church. God grant us guidance and wisdom, that we might rightly examine ourselves this Holy Day.
In the Name of Christ the Crucified +
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