Do We Believe God Regarding Communion: This Do!

Hello To All:

The revelational account: part four.

"Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you." (John 15:14).

In the upper room discourse, found in chapters 13-17 of the gospel of John, Jesus of Nazareth, who is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, provides us with a significant level of insight into what it means to be His disciple.  Our opening text takes us to the core reality of what discipleship to Jesus of Nazareth means: Jesus calls us His friends, when we do what He commands us to do.

If we are to rightly understand this relationship between discipleship and obedience (please see essay of 11/26/11, titled: "I am crucified - Submit to God - Resist the devil"), we need to be reminded that obedience does not earn us the right to be His disciple; rather, right discipleship fosters or leads to right obedience. "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." (Ephesians 2:8-10). We become a disciple ("by grace are ye saved through faith"); and as "His workmanship," maturing in our discipleship, we find that the foundation of God's ordained works, is our Christ empowered obedience. "Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you."

Now we must ask ourselves - how is this relationship between discipleship (being called Christ's friend) and obedience, relevant to this current series of essays regarding believing God and communion? Please turn with me to the revelational account of The Lord's Supper. We find written at 1 Corinthians 11:24: "And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me." In this text, we find four commands from Jesus of Nazareth: all of them given in such a way as to have the expectation, on the part of Christ, of an on going obedient response, from us, his disciples: "Take - Eat - This do - In remembrance of me."

For our purposes, in this essay, we need to take a close look at Christ's command: "This do." The first thing to ask, is what is the "this," that we are to "do?" Now some of your are thinking, that perhaps the elder is a bit slow today in his thinking - after all - isn't it obvious - the "this" is communion: The Lord's Supper. Now, if you are thinking this, or something similar, that is a good thing. If you are a regular reader of this blog, then you should have some sense of how important the truth is to this elder. Just because I make a statement, does not mean that it is the truth.  Everything should be examined to make certain that it is the truth. (Please see essay of 8/28/12 titled: "Do we believe God: What is truth?")

As we think about truth and what it is, let me share with you a communion practice that I observed while visiting the church of some friends, a number of years ago. This was a small congregation with the leadership made up of a group of elders (whether elected by the congregation or ordained by other ordained elders, I do not know).

Towards the end of the service, one of these men, placed a plate containing pieces of cracker or bread and a tray containing small cups of grape juice (since I did not participate, I was able to confirm, after the service, that the contents of the cups was grape juice), on a table at the front of the congregation. This was all done in silence. The elder did not say a thing. The King's Book was not read. A prayer of thanksgiving was not offered. There was not even any mention that the communion service was about to begin. All was done in silence. Then, without any announcement, many of the congregation went forward and took one of the cups and a piece of the bread or cracker (I am not exactly certain regarding what was on the plate), and then returned to their seats and quietly ate and drank. After everyone was finished, the meeting soon came to an end.

I am hoping that many of you; and yes, even all of you, my beloved brethren, are thinking that the above described event was very unusual (I have never encountered anything similar); and yes, even a bit odd. But, isn't that the reality of our fallen and sinful nature - we are always doing odd and sinful things and often thinking of them as right doing.

As an example: when the above described service was over, many of the members met in a room, set apart from the church meeting room and shared some food and drink and a time of visiting. Amongst the food and drink, were some small glasses of orange juice and a plate of crackers. I was able to engage the elder who had quietly deposited the "communion" elements at the front of the congregation. We were near the small cups of orange juice and the plate of crackers, and I asked him how was the drinking of orange juice and the eating of crackers any different from what had just taken place in the  meeting room? He did not have a good answer, was a bit flustered; but, insisted that what happened in the church meeting room was "communion;" and what was taking place in this visiting room with orange juice and crackers was different. To this day, I do not see the difference.

When I hear Jesus of Nazareth say: "This do" - I am compelled to believe that He has something very specific in mind. I am compelled to ask: what is the "this" - that I, and all of the brethren, are supposed to "do?"  If we are to be consistently recognized as disciples of Jesus Christ, and thus His friends; then we must consistently obey Him. As it is written: "Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you." He commands us: "This do."  I am not aware of anything in the scriptures that would give us the latitude to decided for ourselves the details of the "this," that we are commanded to "do." If we are to be obedient, then we must have an understanding of the absolute specifics that Jesus references, when He commands us: "This do."

When next we gather, we shall look to these specifics and examine what the King's Book has to reveal with regards to the: "This" of the command of Jesus to: "This do in remembrance of me."

Until next time, my beloved brethren, in Christ Jesus, I continue to be:

Your servant and your fellow pilgrim,
Elder Theophilus