{"id":1141,"date":"2022-01-29T03:34:36","date_gmt":"2022-01-28T21:34:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/tjdaugherty\/?p=1141"},"modified":"2022-01-29T03:52:40","modified_gmt":"2022-01-28T21:52:40","slug":"recovering-the-lords-supper","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/tjdaugherty\/recovering-the-lords-supper\/","title":{"rendered":"Recovering the Lord’s Supper"},"content":{"rendered":"

INTRODUCTION
\n<\/b>One of the hidden blessings of the stay-at-home orders and the disruption of our everyday lives as a result of the onset of COVID-19 has been a greater focus on the local church and a heightened understanding of the necessity to have a biblical ecclesiology. However, one particular area of ecclesiology that remains underdeveloped among many local churches is the ordinance of the Lord\u2019s Supper. (I must disclose that I write from an explicitly Baptist tradition, but even those from other ecclesiastical backgrounds face similar questions in our present age.) Therefore, I believe it remains a worthwhile endeavor to attempt to recover a biblical and historical approach to understanding the ordinance of the Lord\u2019s Supper.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Many questions require careful consideration in our present context. Is it a viable option to take the Lord\u2019s Supper online? If so, is such an option limited only to public health crises? Can it be included in a wedding ceremony? What about during family worship? Examples of the sort could be multiplied.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The answers to these questions can only be uncovered by a detailed examination of the theology of the ordinance itself.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

THE INSTITUTION OF THE LORD’S SUPPER
\n<\/b>To begin, it may be helpful to quickly mention the institution of the Lord\u2019s Supper. On the night before his death, Jesus gathered with his disciples to celebrate a final Passover meal together. The Passover was a carefully ordered and biblically mandated ritual that occurred each and every year within the Jewish culture. Each element of the meal was specifically designed to remind participants of their redemption and exodus out of Egypt.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Passover lamb reminded them of the blood of the lamb smeared on the door lintels in order to escape the visitation of the angel of death. The unleavened bread reminded them of the swiftness of their redemption in that there was no time to bake bread. The bowl of salt water reminded them of their tears during their years of captivity. And the bitter herbs reminded them of the bitterness of their slavery.<\/span><\/p>\n

At the end of the meal, the host would recount the story of the Exodus. In telling the story, he would emphasize God\u2019s covenant with Israel, their deliverance from slavery in Egypt, and the sacrificial blood of the Passover lamb. They would be reminded of the promises of God and turn to worship Him for His faithfulness.<\/span><\/p>\n

But in all the generations of Israel participating in the Passover, this particular night was different. This was the turning point in all redemptive history. This was the end of the Old Covenant and the beginning of the New Covenant. This was the revelation of God\u2019s unfolding plan to send the perfect Son to the cross.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While thousands of lambs were again being sacrificed on the Passover, the ultimate sacrifice was preparing to go to the cross. God would pour out his wrath against sinners on an innocent substitute\u2014on the one John called the \u201cLamb of God who takes away the sin of the world\u201d (John 1:29). Jesus was the perfect, final, and complete sacrifice for sin.<\/span><\/p>\n

All the previous animal sacrifices under the Old Covenant were insufficient to take away sin. But the perfect Lamb of God going to the cross inaugurated a New Covenant. So while simultaneously serving as the last Passover, this meal also served as the first instance of the Lord\u2019s Supper.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

THE PURPOSE OF THE LORD’S SUPPER
\n<\/b>But, to what end? Why did Jesus establish this ordinance before going to the cross? There are several reasons.<\/span><\/p>\n

From a theological dimension, the Lord\u2019s Supper helps provide a visible depiction of the glorious gospel of Christ. It serves to provide a means whereby we remember the work of Christ (1 Corinthians 11:24\u201325). And in the kindness of God, our remembrance is enhanced by the physical sign of the elements. As 17th century Puritan Thomas Watson once observed, \u201cGod, to help our faith, does not only give us an audible Word, but a visible sign.\u201d Taking the Lord\u2019s Supper is in many ways, according to Watson, like participating in a visible sermon.<\/span><\/p>\n

Patrick Hues Mell, a 19th century Southern Baptist pastor, echoed the same sentiment when he wrote, \u201cGod has two ways of communicating to the people the doctrine of Christ crucified\u2014one, by the vocal utterances of the minister as he addresses himself to their ears\u2014the other, by His ordinances that, by impressive silence, express in symbol the same great truth to their eyes. There are but two gospel ordinances\u2014Baptism and the Lord\u2019s Supper. And the primary object of each is to exhibit in symbol the same great truth of a crucified Saviour that the heralds of salvation proclaim in oral language.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

This is what the Lord\u2019s Supper does\u2014it provides a tangible demonstration of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Every single time we take the elements, we are to be reminded of the reality that Jesus<\/span><\/p>\n

went to the cross in the place of sinners. That he bore the wrath of God. That he took sin upon his shoulders. That he took the punishment that we deserve. That his body was broken for us, and his blood was shed for us. That his love was poured out for us. That his life was laid down for us.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the same way that the Passover meal recalled God\u2019s work in delivering Israel from captivity in Egypt, the Lord\u2019s Supper looks back at God\u2019s work in delivering his people from their captivity to sin. This is why Paul says that as often as we eat the bread and drink the cup, we \u201cproclaim the Lord\u2019s death\u201d (1 Corinthians 11:26). As Mell says, \u201cIn silence and by symbol, it [preaches] to the peoples\u2019 eyes the great gospel truth\u2014Christ\u2019s body was broken and His blood was shed for atonement for sin.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

But we do so, Paul says, \u201cuntil he comes.\u201d And so the Lord\u2019s Supper causes us not only to reflect on the work Christ accomplished on the cross, but it also urges us to look forward with anticipation for his return. Certainly, in taking the Lord\u2019s Supper, we remember his death and all it accomplished. But we also remember that Jesus didn\u2019t remain in the grave. We remember that he defeated death and resurrected and ascended to the right hand of the Father. And, we remember that he is coming back again.<\/span><\/p>\n

When we take the elements together we are to first and foremost remember the gospel. This is our spiritual nourishment. Just like we need physical nourishment each and every day, in the same way we need the spiritual nourishment of the gospel each and every day. And by taking these elements, we are reminded of that spiritual nourishment of the gospel.<\/span><\/p>\n

But in addition to these theological truths, the Lord\u2019s Supper also serves to signify the unity of the body of Christ. Speaking of the Lord\u2019s Supper in 1 Corinthians 10:17, Paul says, \u201cBecause there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In our individualized culture, this reality is often overlooked. Many participants reflect inwardly on their own personal salvation from sin. However, the communal nature of the Lord\u2019s Supper should remind us of the unity we share within the body of Christ. As Paul points out, the common elements of the bread and the cup symbolize the unity of individual believers within a local congregation.<\/span><\/p>\n

THE PARTICIPANTS OF THE LORD’S SUPPER
\n<\/b>This naturally leads to the next question\u2014who, then, can participate in the Lord\u2019s Supper? Who is it designed for?<\/span><\/p>\n

In the same way that the Passover was established for God\u2019s people of Israel, so also the Lord\u2019s Supper is for God\u2019s people of the church. That is to say that the ordinance of the Lord\u2019s Supper is exclusively for believers in Christ, because it serves as a reminder of the gospel truth that only believers cherish.<\/span><\/p>\n

But here, an important observation must be made\u2014the Lord\u2019s Supper is not simply given to individual believers. While all genuine followers of Jesus Christ are given access to the Lord\u2019s Table through the finished work of Jesus Christ, the administration of the ordinance itself is granted exclusively to the church. That is to say that only the church has the authority to administer the ordinance of the Lord\u2019s Supper, and the church has the responsibility to steward this administration rightly.<\/span><\/p>\n

It also seems necessary to make an important theological observation here. The Greek word (<\/span>\u1f10\u03ba\u03ba\u03bb\u03b7\u03c3\u03af\u03b1<\/span><\/i>) translated into English as \u201cchurch\u201d literally means a gathered assembly. New Testament writers refer to the church in two contexts\u2014the universal church and the local church. The universal church includes all believers everywhere and throughout time (Matthew 16:18; Ephesians 1:22; Ephesians 5:23; Colossians 1:18; etc.). The invisible universal church, though, exists visibly on earth in the form of local assemblies. This is the predominant usage of the term church in the New Testament\u2014the gathering of believers into one physical place (Acts 14:23; James 5:14; 1 Corinthians 11:18; etc.).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The local church does not contain all believers everywhere. The local church does not even necessarily contain all believers in a given location. Rather, it is a group of believers who regularly assemble together to officially affirm and oversee one another\u2019s membership through the preaching of the Scriptures and the administration of the ordinances.<\/span><\/p>\n

This distinction between these two uses of church in the New Testament is critical, especially as it pertains to the administration of the ordinances of baptism and the Lord\u2019s Supper. The responsibility to administer the ordinances is not given to the universal church, but to each local church. As Paul instructs believers in Corinth, \u201cWhen you come together <\/span>as a church<\/span><\/i>\u201d (1 Corinthians 11:18).<\/span><\/p>\n

A local church in the United States cannot feasibly celebrate the Lord\u2019s Supper with our brothers and sisters in Zambia or in New Zealand, nor can they celebrate with those who lived in the 1500\u2019s or those who will live in the 2500\u2019s, should the Lord tarry that long. Rather, we celebrate the Lord\u2019s Supper with the body of believers who have covenanted together within the local church\u2014so long as they are in good standing (See 1 Corinthians 5).<\/span><\/p>\n

This gives added weight to the purpose of displaying the unity of the local church as outlined in 1 Corinthians 10. Each local assembly is itself the body of Christ, represented in the one bread that is broken as the church partakes together.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

THE ELEMENTS OF THE LORD’S SUPPER
\n<\/b>But the image of one bread as described by Paul in 1 Corinthians 10 requires that we examine one other component of the theology of the Lord\u2019s Supper\u2014the elements to be used.<\/span><\/p>\n

When Jesus instituted the Lord\u2019s Supper, he took the <\/span>bread<\/span><\/i> and he gave thanks and then he broke it and said, \u201cThis is my body which is for you.\u201d And in the same way he also took the <\/span>cup<\/span><\/i> and said, \u201cThis cup is the new covenant in my blood\u201d (1 Corinthians 11:24\u201325).<\/span><\/p>\n

What is noteworthy here is that Jesus consecrated the elements of the bread and the cup. He set them apart for the specific purpose of proclaiming his death until he comes. In the same way that the elements of the Passover were specifically set apart by God, the elements of the Lord\u2019s Supper have likewise been ordained for this purpose. To be clear, there is no intrinsic value within bread or the fruit of the vine. Rather, those elements have become sacred because God himself has set them apart for this specific purpose.<\/span><\/p>\n

In order to rightly partake of this ordinance, we must follow the precedent set before us by our Lord. Admittedly, the Bible does not give hard declarations about the specific outworkings of how we might replicate those elements, and thus we would do well not to say more than Scripture does. However, we must acknowledge that we likewise do not have freedom to extend outside the parameters of what Scripture has established. That is to say, we cannot simply grab some potato chips and apple juice and rightly call it the Lord\u2019s Supper. The elements matter, because they were established and consecrated by our Lord for this specific purpose.<\/span><\/p>\n

QUESTIONS ANSWERED
\n<\/b>With this theological background in place, we may now attempt to answer pressing questions faced by Christians in our present context. Most notably, is it theologically possible for a church to administer the Lord\u2019s Supper online? Can individuals participate in the Lord\u2019s Supper from within their own homes?<\/span><\/p>\n

During the earliest stages of the panic caused by the COVID-19 hysteria, many pastors and theologians (including several whom I greatly respect) argued that churches could implement a virtual Lord\u2019s Supper option given the unique circumstances of the day. Certainly, churches found themselves in an unprecedented situation. Many were simply aiming to address a pressing issue with the limited information we had about a widespread illness while simultaneously aiming to shepherd their local congregations.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, despite having the best of intentions, I would submit that churches cannot administer the Lord\u2019s Supper virtually. Because the physical act of gathering is absolutely essential to the ordinance. When addressing issues regarding the Lord\u2019s Supper in 1 Corinthians 11, Paul refers to their physical coming together as a church five times. In Verse 17, he says, \u201cwhen you come together.\u201d And again, in verse 18 he clarifies, \u201cwhen you come together as a church.\u201d Verse 20 repeats, \u201cWhen you come together.\u201d Again, in verse 33, he writes, \u201cWhen you come together to eat.\u201d And verse 34 concludes, \u201cso that when you come together.\u201d Over and over again, the emphasis is on the physical gathering of the church. The Lord\u2019s Supper, then, cannot be administered when the church is scattered. Part of the essence of the ordinance includes the physical presence of the collective body of Christ.<\/span><\/p>\n

Additionally, as we have seen in 1 Corinthians 10, part of the purpose of the Lord\u2019s Supper is to display the unity of the church. As Paul writes, \u201cBecause there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread.\u201d (1 Corinthians 10:17) Scripture thus identifies those within the local church as one body, and they all partake and share of the one bread. The local church doesn\u2019t share with another church in the community or on the other side of the world. Rather, the one bread represents the one body of Christ as displayed within the local church.<\/span><\/p>\n

Therefore, churches only rightly administer the Lord\u2019s Supper when the entire church has the opportunity to gather together for corporate worship. In the same way, then, the Lord\u2019s Supper is not something that can be administered in someone\u2019s home during family worship or at a wedding ceremony or in a Sunday School class. Because the biblical emphasis is on the whole church\u2014those believers who have covenanted to assemble together regularly for worship.<\/span><\/p>\n

What, then, should churches do in the midst of crises? What if the church is providentially hindered from gathering for a short time like many were at the beginning of the global disruption of COVID-19? I would submit that we simply wait on the Lord. Churches should wait until the Lord\u2019s Supper can be administered as it was intended\u2014with the body of Christ gathered together for the proclamation of the gospel and as a display of the unity of the church.<\/span><\/p>\n

CONCLUSION
\n<\/b><\/span>Theology always matters. Our theological understanding of the Lord\u2019s Supper must inform and determine how we partake. We would thus do well to continue to pay close attention to the Scriptures and to think through our practice of this precious ordinance.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Decisions about the way in which churches administer the Lord\u2019s Supper must not be made out of convenience or comfort of tradition. After all, each time we partake, we boldly proclaim our Lord\u2019s death until he comes again.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One of the hidden blessings of the stay-at-home orders and the disruption of our everyday lives as a result of the onset of COVID-19 has been a greater focus on the local church and a heightened understanding of the necessity to have a biblical ecclesiology. However, one particular area of ecclesiology that remains underdeveloped among many local churches is the ordinance of the Lord\u2019s Supper.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":673,"featured_media":1142,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"wds_primary_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-1141","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-theological","8":"entry"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/tjdaugherty\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2022\/01\/34717-communion.1200w.tn_.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":340,"url":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/tjdaugherty\/why-you-should-go-to-church\/","url_meta":{"origin":1141,"position":0},"title":"Why You Should Go To Church","author":"TJ Daugherty","date":"March 20, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Not everyone who professes to be a Christian actually goes to church. 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