The Church in Corinth had
a unity problem. In Paul’s first letter
to this church, he writes disapprovingly about their approach to the communal
meal that included their celebration of Communion. As part of that discussion Paul warns against
anyone who “eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner.”
(I Corinthians 11:27) What does it mean
to take Communion in an “unworthy” manner?
Paul goes on to describe the judgment that will come from God against
those who do this, so figuring out what he means is important to us.
For the Church in Corinth the primary issue was unity,
that lesson will apply to some churches and some Christians who struggle with
the issue of placing the bond of Christ above all other distinctions. But for others, the issue of not being “unworthy”
reflects the larger principle of maintaining a proper relationship with
God. We know that anyone who approaches
Communion in an irreverent or flippant way would be mocking the table of the
Lord, but what of those whose fault is that they approach Communion while still
walking in darkness? Because God desires
a relationship with his people, a relationship defined by his character and
Law, it is unacceptable for the people of God to try to serve two masters by
keeping one foot in the world of sin and one foot in the kingdom of God. Such hypocrisy is self-destructive; it will
lead to our own physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual demise. We cannot come to the Communion table with an
unrepentant heart beholden to wickedness.
What is Paul’s solution to the danger of being “unworthy”? Judge yourself. Take the time to examine your own heart and
mind to see if there is anything there that is causing, or could cause, damage
to your relationship with your heavenly Father.
We know that it is necessary to be proactive in our marriages, necessary
to put in the time and effort to keep the passion alive. Our spouse doesn’t deserve to be ignored,
neglected, and certainly not cheated upon.
Why would our relationship with God deserve any less?
In a nation where the majority of people self-identify as
Christians, there should not be such
high rates of abortion, divorce, infidelity, gambling, drug addiction, fraud,
and whatever other vice you want to consider.
These problems are not simply problem outside our churches; these sins
infect the body of Christ. When the
Church of Jesus Christ stars choosing righteousness over wickedness, when the
Church takes its marriage vow as the bride of Christ seriously, our society
will change. It is no wonder when the
Lost act according to their sin nature, but the people of God are supposed to
be different. We have been washed clean
by the precious blood of the Lamb; we cannot walk in darkness and have
fellowship with our Savior.
Why do we take Communion, why do we go to Church, why do
we volunteer to serve? All these and
more are ways in which we can fill up our lives with righteousness and
holiness. The key to avoiding sin is not
simply avoiding temptation. Success
against temptation will be found when we leave no room in our lives for sin to
take root. Let us them examine
ourselves, confess our sins, and approach the table of the Lord with humility
as we do what is necessary to build up our relationship with God and indeed be “worthy”
of that union.
To watch the video, click on the link below:
No comments:
Post a Comment