Communion, it’s all about Jesus!!
It’s all about the meal!!!
The Best Meal You’ve Ever Had
·
there
are three variables:
o The space, the
physical location.
o What was the
occasion
o Who did you eat it with?
Family, friends, coworkers, neighbors, maybe it was the first date and that
friendship started.
·
I
want you to emotionally connect with this. Two things happen when we have a
meal. Number one, we’re enjoying our friends, and number two, we’re welcoming
people to become our friends
·
This
is why the Bible talks about fellowship. That’s where God’s people eat meals
and do life together as friends.
Christians
should eat with non-Christians and should eat with Christians who are
repentant, but eating with Christians who are unrepentant who want the benefits
of Christianity while living in open rebellion, that’s intolerable to the Lord.
Meals in the Bible
·
One
way to examine the Scriptures is to look at the meals, a series of meals eaten
with and without God, and that culminates in the Christian meal of Communion,
also called the Lord’s Supper, the Lord’s Table, the Eucharist. It goes by
different names according to your tradition and heritage, but it’s about a meal
being eaten with God and his people.
We are going to look
at 5 meals form Genesis to Revelations and examine what it meant to take meals
with God and without and look at how important it is to keep God centered in
all we do !!
Meal #1 – Forbidden Fruit (Genesis 3)
·
The
first meal is forbidden fruit, and it is the first meal eaten without God in
Genesis 3
·
Do
you know the story???
o Some people’s view
of God is that God essentially creates life as a law garden with a grace tree,
meaning, the answer’s no to everything, and there’s only a thing or two that
you really get to do. The way God created the world; it was a grace garden with
a law tree in the middle. Tons of freedom and joy with one thing that was
forbidden.
o they received a sin
nature
o It’s a portrait of
life without God
§ It’s not just about
eating a meal; it’s about picking a friend. What Adam and Eve were doing is
saying, “We choose not to be friends with God. We choose to be friends with
Satan
o Eating is a form of
worshiping, and when we eat a meal, we’re not just choosing a food, we’re
picking a relationship.
What happens in
Genesis 3 is that a meal is eaten without God, and a friendship is forged in
rebellion against God, and then the promise is made that Jesus will come and he
will make all things new and better. What happens then is they are kicked out
of the Garden of Eden and they’re cast away from the tree of life, because had
they partaken of the tree of life, they would have lived forever in sin,
separated from God. So, it was an act of grace that God kicked them out.
Meal #2 – Passover (Exodus 12)
·
440
years of suffering under Egypt’s rule
·
It
culminated with a most cruel pharaoh. He was abusive and harsh to God’s people,
he mistreated them, and he abused them. He did not want them to worship their God;
he wanted them to worship him as God.
·
God
raised up Moses to confront this king named Pharaoh, and Moses came on behalf
of the Lord.
·
(Tell
the story of how God kept warning Pharaoh and he wouldn’t listen.)
·
Explain
Passover (sacrificial lamb) ( the last Wrath against the paraoh)
AND: it’s all a prequel
to Jesus
·
Passover is
preparatory, anticipatory. It’s a sign pointing to a greater reality, Jesus
Christ, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world
·
1 Corinthians 5:7 (ESV) For
Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.
·
Revelation 5:12 (ESV)
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and
might and honor and glory and blessing!”
Meal #3 – The Last Supper (Matthew 26:26-28)
·
Its
Passover season, so Jesus is going to celebrate Passover, as the fulfillment of
the expectation.
·
Read and break down the Verse!!
·
Jesus
is changing over one thousand years of history.
·
Passover
is and always has been about Jesus, it’s always been about Him
·
Every
time you have a piece of bread, remember Jesus’ body, broken for me
·
Here’s
the bottom line. We’re sinners. You’re a sinner, I’m a sinner. We’re all hard-hearted,
want to be our own God, disagree, let me do what I want, don’t impose on my
life, this is my perspective, my values, my kingdom, I’m in charge. Jesus
comes, says, “No, you’re a sinner. You got a hard heart and you need a new
heart. You need your sins forgiven. Only God can forgive our sins!
Meal #4 – Communion (Acts 2:42) This is how we try
and do church
·
As
God’s people when we take Communion, we’re showing, “I’m friends with Jesus and
his people.” You can’t be a Christian and not connected to the church.
·
When
we partake in Communion in service or in homes together, what we’re doing is
we’re doing it together saying, “I’m friends with Jesus, and I’m friends with
you, and I’m part of the family.”
·
Read
Verse 2:42-46 Break
it Down
·
We
are a family that’s not perfect….we will drive each other crazy!!
A Worthy and an
Unworthy Way (1 Cor 11:28-32)
·
Explain this text!!!
·
ITS ABOUT
REPENTENCE!!!
·
Meal #5 – Wedding Supper of the Lamb (Revelations
19:6-9)
·
We start with a
party and the bible ends with a party!!
·
It ends with a huge
party where we are reconciled with Jesus as His bride!
·
It’s all about Jesus;
it’s always been about Jesus!!
·
Revelation 19:6–9 (ESV)
6 Then I heard
what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters
and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out,
“Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
the Almighty reigns.
7 Let us rejoice and exult
and give him the
glory,
for the marriage of
the Lamb has come,
and his Bride has
made herself ready;
8 it was granted her to clothe herself
with fine linen,
bright and pure”—
for the fine linen
is the righteous deeds of the saints.
9 And the angel
said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage
supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.”
