We often hear Christian believers saying, "I don't have a
religion, I have a relationship - a relationship with Jesus
Christ." Is that really true? Well, yes and no. True,
a religion is a belief system. The world religions believe in
their gods, sometimes thousands of them, and their rituals.
Judaism believes in God, but not Jesus Christ. Islam believes
in Allah, but denies Jesus Christ. Satanism is a religion,
believing in and worshiping Satan. There are New Age religions,
including Wicca, which worship everything except God. Even atheist
have a
religion. They supposedly believe strongly that God does not
exist. That is a belief system, aka, a religion.
Basically, most religions are anchored in many traditions, rituals, creeds, and myths. While in our Christian faith we look only toward Jesus Christ, God the Son, as our Savior. And we do not have a lot of rituals to perform, not a lot of prewritten prayers, oaths, slogans, creeds, etc., to repeat in our relationship with Him and in our services where we worship Him.
The typical Christian worship service is very simple. It consists of: Worship in Prayer, Worship in Fellowship, Worship in Music, Worship in Giving, and Worship in Hearing The Word of God proclaimed. No creeds, no rituals, no oaths or slogans, no prewritten prayers or chants - only Worship. Clean, sweet, and beautiful. Yet we have a very close one-on-one relationship with Him. Once we believe, He becomes our very best Friend.
Is a Christian relationship really that simple? Yes.
God gave the Jews Ten Commandments and over 600 Laws. The Ten Commandments are still very valid for Christian believers today. But Jesus Christ compressed those Ten Commandments into Two Commandments to make our Christian faith simpler and more "user friendly." However "user friendly" is definitely not the same as the "feel good" religion as we find in many Liberal Theology churches today. Conservative Christian Theology still has sin, hell, and Satan in our teachings - and we know that Jesus Christ is the ONLY way to eternal life. He has just made it simpler and easier to recognize those facts and for us to make sure "we have the Son" (1 John 5:12).
Jesus breaks the Ten Commandments down into two easy to understand commandments. The first and most important is our relationship with God the Father - Commandments 1 through 4. And the other, according to Jesus Christ, is our relationship with our fellow man, Commandments 5 through 10:
And Jesus Christ left us Two Ordinances to follow as Christian believers:
We know that a Christian believer need only be baptized one time, as we follow Him in Baptism. Just as He died, was buried, rose again, and ascended into heaven only once - we follow Him in baptism only once. Understanding what He did for us is key to believing and baptism. That is why Infant Baptism does not make sense, since an infant does not have that understanding. We dedicate our infants to the Lord and pledge as parents and grandparents to guide them in His teachings. When the child is old enough to understand, then that child is responsible and must choose to follow Him in faith and in baptism.
But the Lord's Supper is not a one time event. Jesus tells us to do this "in remembrance of Him." How often does your church remember Him? How often does your church celebrate the Lord's Supper?
Should we call it Communion or should we call it the Lord's Supper? Either is correct, but let's examine both. Calling it the Lord's Supper is probably most common and, for me, has a deeper meaning. What is more personal and intimate than sitting at the table sharing an evening meal with friends and family?
Jesus tells us in Revelation 3:20, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me." That is the ultimate intimacy, being at the Lord's Supper Table. That implies we are in personal communion with Him - just as when we sit, pray, and eat with our immediate family. It is a form of Communion, but I personally prefer to consider it dining at the Lord's Supper Table.
Let's look at the way several leading theologians define the Ordinance of the Lord's Supper:
A. Dr. Wayne Grudem tells us in "Bible Doctrine, Essential Teachings of the Christian Faith" - chapter twenty-eight, pages 387-394:
B. Dr. Ron Rhodes tells us in "The Complete Book of Bible Answers" - chapter twenty-four, pages 229-230:
Since we participate in the Lord’s Supper in Remembrance of Him and His Redemptive Work on the cross - it would seem that we should do this fairly often. Since becoming a believer in 1987, I have been in different Filipino-American Baptist churches in Southern California - and typically we have always celebrated the Lord's Supper once a month, as part of our regular worship service.
At the end of our regular worship service once a month we will close that service by having the elders, or other spiritually mature members, pass the elements (unleavened wafers and grape juice) to the congregation, as this is being done our pastor will review and share Scripture relating to the Lord's Supper (1 Corinthians 11:23-26), and then we all participate by, together, eating the wafer symbolizing His body and then drinking the grape juice symbolizing His blood shed for us.
Our pastor will explain that the Lord's Supper is a time for all believers to do a spiritual examination of himself or herself, that it is a time to for all believers to renew our focus on Christ, our Christian walk, and our Christian obedience. Then our pastor will remind the congregation present in our worship service that day that the Lord's Supper is only for those who have believed and received Him as Lord and Savior.
So, how often does YOUR church fellowship "Do this in remembrance of Him"? Daily, weekly, monthly, once a year, once every three years, never? Once again, my personal feelings are that it should be done frequently enough to stay in faith with His teaching, yet not be so frequent that it becomes a ritual and loses its flavor. Taking Communion every day or every week, for me, would bring it into the realm of being a ritual.
Yet a church which only partakes of the Lord's Supper only every six months, or once a year, or once every several years - gives me the feeling that this church places no real value on His declaration, "do this in remembrance of Me." Again it is my personal view and belief, but I believe that the Lord's Supper should be celebrated on a monthly basis in every church - and that ALL believers present that day, local members and visitors, should participate. Food for thought? I pray this has given you sincere Christian food for thought.
While there are churches which teach that only members of that local church fellowship can partake of the celebration - I personally believe that when our Lord told us in Luke 22:19, "do this in remembrance of Me" - He was speaking to ALL believers, not just a local fellowship.
The following two short videos will help us better understand the meaning and responsibility of participating in the Lord's Supper.
The first video is a short, 4 minute, animated explanation taken from GotQuestions (dot) org and is a good review of that special form of worship:
The second short video (3 1/2 minutes) I made from a PowerPoint Presentation based upon chapters 48 through 50 of Dr. Wayne Grudem's book "Systematic Theology - An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine." This 1311 page book published in 1994 has virtually become a standard textbook in most Christian seminaries. There is a shorter version of his book titled "Bible Doctrine, Essential Teachings Of The Christian Faith" published in 1999. A pastor Friend, Pastor Ed Dacio, gifted me this shorter book of Christian doctrines which has been a true blessing in my writing ministry. And I have Dr. Grudem's initial book "Systematic Theology" downloaded into my computer in Adobe PDF format.
In this short presentation video, chapter 48 speaks of the church, chapter 49 speaks of Baptism, and chapter addresses the Lord's Supper. Below is a copy/paste of a particular slide in the presentation which speaks of what I have tried to express earlier regarding participating in the Lord's Supper:
You can view this PowerPoint based video at:
I pray this discussion of the "Two Commandments And Two Ordinances" has been helpful to you - and that your church family is regularly enjoying the spiritual blessings of regular visits to the Lord's Table.
God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,
Bill
Basically, most religions are anchored in many traditions, rituals, creeds, and myths. While in our Christian faith we look only toward Jesus Christ, God the Son, as our Savior. And we do not have a lot of rituals to perform, not a lot of prewritten prayers, oaths, slogans, creeds, etc., to repeat in our relationship with Him and in our services where we worship Him.
The typical Christian worship service is very simple. It consists of: Worship in Prayer, Worship in Fellowship, Worship in Music, Worship in Giving, and Worship in Hearing The Word of God proclaimed. No creeds, no rituals, no oaths or slogans, no prewritten prayers or chants - only Worship. Clean, sweet, and beautiful. Yet we have a very close one-on-one relationship with Him. Once we believe, He becomes our very best Friend.
Is a Christian relationship really that simple? Yes.
God gave the Jews Ten Commandments and over 600 Laws. The Ten Commandments are still very valid for Christian believers today. But Jesus Christ compressed those Ten Commandments into Two Commandments to make our Christian faith simpler and more "user friendly." However "user friendly" is definitely not the same as the "feel good" religion as we find in many Liberal Theology churches today. Conservative Christian Theology still has sin, hell, and Satan in our teachings - and we know that Jesus Christ is the ONLY way to eternal life. He has just made it simpler and easier to recognize those facts and for us to make sure "we have the Son" (1 John 5:12).
Jesus breaks the Ten Commandments down into two easy to understand commandments. The first and most important is our relationship with God the Father - Commandments 1 through 4. And the other, according to Jesus Christ, is our relationship with our fellow man, Commandments 5 through 10:
(1) Your relationship with God ~ "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind" - Matt 22:37
(2) Your relationship with your fellow man ~ "And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself" - Matt 22:39
And Jesus Christ left us Two Ordinances to follow as Christian believers:
(1) Baptism ~ "Go - Make disciples - Baptize them - Teach them." (Matthew 28:19-20) ~ Only done once.
(2) Communion / Lord's Supper ~ "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me." (Luke 22:19) ~ To be done as often as Your Church Fellowship chooses to Remember Him and what He has done for us.
We know that a Christian believer need only be baptized one time, as we follow Him in Baptism. Just as He died, was buried, rose again, and ascended into heaven only once - we follow Him in baptism only once. Understanding what He did for us is key to believing and baptism. That is why Infant Baptism does not make sense, since an infant does not have that understanding. We dedicate our infants to the Lord and pledge as parents and grandparents to guide them in His teachings. When the child is old enough to understand, then that child is responsible and must choose to follow Him in faith and in baptism.
But the Lord's Supper is not a one time event. Jesus tells us to do this "in remembrance of Him." How often does your church remember Him? How often does your church celebrate the Lord's Supper?
Should we call it Communion or should we call it the Lord's Supper? Either is correct, but let's examine both. Calling it the Lord's Supper is probably most common and, for me, has a deeper meaning. What is more personal and intimate than sitting at the table sharing an evening meal with friends and family?
Jesus tells us in Revelation 3:20, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me." That is the ultimate intimacy, being at the Lord's Supper Table. That implies we are in personal communion with Him - just as when we sit, pray, and eat with our immediate family. It is a form of Communion, but I personally prefer to consider it dining at the Lord's Supper Table.
Let's look at the way several leading theologians define the Ordinance of the Lord's Supper:
A. Dr. Wayne Grudem tells us in "Bible Doctrine, Essential Teachings of the Christian Faith" - chapter twenty-eight, pages 387-394:
The Lord Jesus instituted two ordinances (or sacraments) to be observed by the church. Last week we discussed baptism, an ordinance that is only observed once by each person, as a sign of the beginning of his or her Christian life. This week we discuss the Lord’s Supper, an ordinance that is to be observed repeatedly throughout our Christian lives, as a sign of continuing in fellowship with Christ . . .
The meaning of the Lord’s Supper is complex, rich, and full. There are several things symbolized and affirmed in the Lord’s Supper.
1. Christ’s Death: When we participate in the Lord’s supper we symbolize the death of Christ because our actions give a picture of his death for us. . . . “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes” (1 Corinthians 11:26).
2. Our Participation in the Benefits of Christ’s Death: Jesus commanded his disciples, “Take, eat; this is my body” (Matthew 26:26). As we individually reach out and take the cup for ourselves, each one of us is, by that action, proclaiming, “I am taking the benefits of Christ’s death to myself.” . . .
3. Spiritual Nourishment: Just as ordinary food nourishes our physical bodies, so the bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper give nourishment to us. But they also picture the fact that there is spiritual nourishment and refreshment that Christ is giving to our souls; the ceremony that Jesus instituted is, in its very nature, designed to teach us this.
4. The Unity of Believers: When Christians participate in the Lord’s Supper together they also give a clear sign of their unity with one another. In fact, Paul says, “Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread” (1 Corinthians 10:17).
Who Should Participate in the Lord’s Supper?
Despite differences over some aspects of the Lord’s Supper, most Protestants would agree, first, that only those who believe in Christ should participate in it, because it is a sign of being a Christian and continuing in the Christian life. . . .
Second, many Protestants would argue from the meaning of baptism and the meaning of the Lord’s Supper that, ordinarily, only those who have been baptized should participate in the Lord’s Supper. . . .
But others, including myself, would object to such a restriction as follows: A different problem arises if someone who is a genuine believer, but not yet baptized, is not allowed to participate in the Lord’s Supper when Christians get together.
In that case the person’s non-participation symbolizes that he or she is not a member of the body of Christ which is coming together to observe the Lord’s Supper in a unified fellowship (see 1 Corinthians 10:17: “Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread”).
Bill Gray Note: Personally I believe the question of who should participate in the Lord's Supper falls upon the individual person. For you and I cannot tell a person he or she is not saved, not a believer in Christ. Such a decision falls upon the individual to do a self-examination such as:
1. "Have I truly received the Lord?" Keep in mind that the thief on the cross was not baptized.
2. "Am I currently harboring an unrepentant sin which would prevent me from participating in the Lord's Supper?"
I cannot answer those questions for this individual, nor can any pastor.
B. Dr. Ron Rhodes tells us in "The Complete Book of Bible Answers" - chapter twenty-four, pages 229-230:
What are the different views of the Lord’s Supper?
There are four primary views:
The Roman Catholic view is known as transubstantiation. The advocates of this view say that the elements (unleavened wafers and wine/grape juice) actually change into the body (and blood) of Jesus Christ.
The Lutheran view is labeled consubstantiation. According to this view, Christ is present in, with, and under the bread and wine. Christ is truly present, but no change occurs in the elements.
The Reformed view is that Christ is spiritually present at the Lord’s Supper. It is a means of grace. The proponents of this view say that the elements contain a dynamic presence of Jesus, and it is made effective in the believer as he partakes.
The memorial view (my view) is that the elements do not change. The ordinance is not intended as a means of communicating grace to the participant. The bread and wine are (only) symbols and reminders of Jesus in His death and resurrection (1 Corinthians 11:24-25).
Since we participate in the Lord’s Supper in Remembrance of Him and His Redemptive Work on the cross - it would seem that we should do this fairly often. Since becoming a believer in 1987, I have been in different Filipino-American Baptist churches in Southern California - and typically we have always celebrated the Lord's Supper once a month, as part of our regular worship service.
At the end of our regular worship service once a month we will close that service by having the elders, or other spiritually mature members, pass the elements (unleavened wafers and grape juice) to the congregation, as this is being done our pastor will review and share Scripture relating to the Lord's Supper (1 Corinthians 11:23-26), and then we all participate by, together, eating the wafer symbolizing His body and then drinking the grape juice symbolizing His blood shed for us.
Our pastor will explain that the Lord's Supper is a time for all believers to do a spiritual examination of himself or herself, that it is a time to for all believers to renew our focus on Christ, our Christian walk, and our Christian obedience. Then our pastor will remind the congregation present in our worship service that day that the Lord's Supper is only for those who have believed and received Him as Lord and Savior.
1 Corinthians 11:23-24, "For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, 'Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.' ~ All believers then together take the wafer symbolizing His body broken for us.
1 Corinthians 11:25-26, "In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.' For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes." ~ All believers then together drink of the grape juice symbolizing His blood spilled for us.
So, how often does YOUR church fellowship "Do this in remembrance of Him"? Daily, weekly, monthly, once a year, once every three years, never? Once again, my personal feelings are that it should be done frequently enough to stay in faith with His teaching, yet not be so frequent that it becomes a ritual and loses its flavor. Taking Communion every day or every week, for me, would bring it into the realm of being a ritual.
Yet a church which only partakes of the Lord's Supper only every six months, or once a year, or once every several years - gives me the feeling that this church places no real value on His declaration, "do this in remembrance of Me." Again it is my personal view and belief, but I believe that the Lord's Supper should be celebrated on a monthly basis in every church - and that ALL believers present that day, local members and visitors, should participate. Food for thought? I pray this has given you sincere Christian food for thought.
While there are churches which teach that only members of that local church fellowship can partake of the celebration - I personally believe that when our Lord told us in Luke 22:19, "do this in remembrance of Me" - He was speaking to ALL believers, not just a local fellowship.
The following two short videos will help us better understand the meaning and responsibility of participating in the Lord's Supper.
The first video is a short, 4 minute, animated explanation taken from GotQuestions (dot) org and is a good review of that special form of worship:
What Is The Importance Of The Lord's Supper / Christian Communion? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfB23DmeWWw
The second short video (3 1/2 minutes) I made from a PowerPoint Presentation based upon chapters 48 through 50 of Dr. Wayne Grudem's book "Systematic Theology - An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine." This 1311 page book published in 1994 has virtually become a standard textbook in most Christian seminaries. There is a shorter version of his book titled "Bible Doctrine, Essential Teachings Of The Christian Faith" published in 1999. A pastor Friend, Pastor Ed Dacio, gifted me this shorter book of Christian doctrines which has been a true blessing in my writing ministry. And I have Dr. Grudem's initial book "Systematic Theology" downloaded into my computer in Adobe PDF format.
In this short presentation video, chapter 48 speaks of the church, chapter 49 speaks of Baptism, and chapter addresses the Lord's Supper. Below is a copy/paste of a particular slide in the presentation which speaks of what I have tried to express earlier regarding participating in the Lord's Supper:
"The Lord’s Supper looks forward to a greater feast (Matt 26:29, Rev 19:9). From Genesis to Revelation, God’s aim has been to bring his people into fellowship with himself, and one of the great joys of experiencing that fellowship is the fact that we can eat and drink in the presence of the Lord."
You can view this PowerPoint based video at:
"Systematic Theology, An Introduction to Bible Doctrine" by Dr Wayne Grudem, Chapters 48, 49, 50 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OqLMu7xI2Wg&list=PL_YT3RttutrgBgasKH52cypQO_ADjr5ns
I pray this discussion of the "Two Commandments And Two Ordinances" has been helpful to you - and that your church family is regularly enjoying the spiritual blessings of regular visits to the Lord's Table.
God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,
Bill
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