One of the reasons we gather on the Lord’s Day each week is to remember the death of our Savior. The Lord’s Supper is a recipe of remembrance. Paul quoted Jesus in I Corinthians 11:24 when He said, “This do in remembrance of me.” What is this remembrance made up of?
First, it is made up of proclamation. In I Corinthians 11:26 it says we proclaim or declare the Lord’s death until He comes again. Every time we gather and partake we are declaring to the world that God sent His Son to die for the sins of all, and we believe and follow Jesus.
Secondly, this remembrance is made up of self-examination. In I Corinthians 11:28 Paul tells us to examine ourselves as we partake. We look at ourselves and we compare ourselves to our Savior. We find where the recipe of our life is lacking, and we determine to change.
Last, this remembrance is made up of discernment. Paul tells us to remember the Lord’s body worthily by discerning in I Corinthians 11:28-29. That means seeing the Lord’s death with the eye of faith—his scourged body, his nailed hands, his pierced side. In his prophetic voice Isaiah remembered the Lord’s death–before it ever happened– in this way:
“He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows; yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed…” Isaiah 53:3-5
Each of us must use the same ingredients in our recipe of remembrance—we all should discern, examine, and proclaim. How we do these things in our hearts and minds may be different. You may read a passage of scripture, someone else may meditate on the words of a spiritual song, while others pray for forgiveness after examining themselves. Brother Gus Nichols spoke once about how some Sundays he left the Lord’s Supper feeling bold, rejoicing in the blood that washed him clean, coming boldly to the throne of grace. Other Sundays he left feeling ashamed, sorrowful over how his sins had caused Jesus’ suffering. Remembering can bring out a variety of emotions, but all of them should lead us to the same result—a greater devotion to our Lord and a greater thanksgiving for His sacrifice!
-Debbie Kea
