Title: This is My Body

Focus: When we partake of the Lord's Supper, we remember the body of Christ, the fact that he became a human and brought us all together as his body.

Function: To help the hearers understand that the Lords Supper is both a communion with the Lord and communion with one another in the body.


Intro:
1.  God Loves you - We don’t remind one another of that often enough
2.  Weekly reminder of this in Lord’s Supper
3.  What is the “Lords’ Supper”
	a.  May seem like strange ritual to a visitor
	b.  Has been misunderstood over last 2000 years
	c.  Western Medeival Church - Transubstantiation
		- Sacrifice of the Mass
		- You “re-present” and “re-enact” the sacrifice of Christ
		- Cannot have eternal life without the Mass


I.  “This is my body” in John 6
	A.  Jn 6:52-59 - This is likely what contributed to the misunderstanding
		1.  This view modified during Lutheran reformation - Consubstantiation
		2.  Swiss Reformation - Christ is present, but only spiritually
	B.  What is Jesus trying to get across in John 6?
		1.  Background - Feeding of 5,000 w/ 2 fish and 5 loaves
			a.  Jesus left to avoid being forced to be a military king
			b.  When they found him, Jesus recognized a teachable moment
		2.  v.27 - Work for imperishable, not perishable food
			a.  (v.29) How?  By believing in Jesus 
			b.  They ask for the bread of heaven from God (v.30-34)
		3.  v.35 - Jesus says HE HIMSELF is this bread of life 
			a.  v.40 - To eat = believe in him = eternal life
			b.  v.49 - He is not like manna, will die anyway if eat manna
			c.  v.50-51 - Jesus is living bread
		4.  Jesus gave his “flesh” (v.51)  Eat his flesh and drink his blood????
			a.  Not physical bread (not like manna v.58)
			b.  Dt. 8:3 - Man not live by bread alone, but by every word
			c.  What happened to the word in John 1:14? - Became flesh
			d.  Jesus is the word of God, therefore the bread of life
			e.  v.63 - “The words that I have spoken are spirit and life”
	C.  ILL:  Did this come to mind when early Christians ate communion?
		1.  They partook of the bread of life by “believing” in Jesus
		2.  Not consubstantiation, transubstantiation, etc.
	D.  Don’t do theology simply by “what we are against”
		1.  “I know what we are against, but what are we for?”
		2.  Is there more to the Lord’s Supper than this?


II.  “This is my body”  in the book of Hebrews
	A.  2 John 7 - Those say Jesus not come in flesh = deceiver & antichrist
		1.  Jesus came in the flesh is a cardinal doctrine
		2.  Theologians call in the doctrine of the “incarnation”
		3.  John 1:14 - The word became a man!
	B.  Look at what Jesus having a human body does for us
		1.  Heb 1:1-3 - God spoke to us in his son
			a.  He is the “radiance of his glory”
			b.  Jesus is God, so represented God’s presence in human form
		2.  Heb 2:9-11, 14, 17-18 - On other hand, Jesus is man
			a.  v.9-11 - Jesus made lower than angels, calls us “brethren”
			b.  v.14 - He PARTOOK (fellowshipped) in our humanity
				- Would be me like partaking of wormdom
				- Jesus lowered himself and transformed!
			c.  v.17-18 - Became a merciful and faithful high priest
			d.  Not only is he God’s representative, He is ours as well!!!!!
		3.  Did partaking of our humanity defile him?  (Heb 4:14-15)
			a.  v.15 - Yet without sin
			b.  The bread we eat is “unleavened”
				- Leaven = negative connotation (sin & putrefication)
				- Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees (Mt 16:6; Lk 12:1)
				- 1 Cor 5:6 - Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens 
				      	the whole lump of dough? (immorality)
				- I Cor 5:8 - Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the 
					leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and 
					truth.
				- Gal 5:9 A little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough. (legalism)
			c.  v.16 - But Jesus without sin, so we can approach God
			d.  Heb 5:7-9 - In his temptations, he became “perfect”
				- Perfect High Priest
				- Can be our representative because of his flesh
				- Can be God’s representative because of sinlessness
	C. ILL:  Little Tony scared in bed
		1.  Several times, mom comforted then went back to bed
		2.  Finally said - Don’t be afraid, God is with you
		3.  Where?  He’s here all around you
		4.  Tony:  “I want someone with skin on”
	D.  That is who Jesus is - God with skin on
		1.  This is my body - he is merciful and faithful high priest
		2.  God loves you - Will say it again
	E.  If I were to stop here, I would be missing something big in “this is my body”


III.  “This is my body”  in 1 Cor 11:17-34
	A.  Beginning to see how phrase “this is my body” is pregnant with meaning
		1.  Another development - Open v.s. closed communion
		2.  Restoration churches typically practiced closed communion
		3.  Some churches today simply state that this is for Christians
		4.  This comes from the passages we are about to look at
	B.  Paul develops the idea of his body in communion in a different way
		1.  Applies it to a problem in Corinth
		2.  v.17-20 - Only place in bible the phrase,  “Lords Supper” is used
			a.  Whose supper were they eating?  Their own
			b.  Problem was not that they were eating a meal that consisted 
			      of more than a pinch of matza and a sip of wine
				- v.21 - Some going hungry, some drunk (stuffed)
				- v.22 - Shaming those who had nothing
				- Was supposed to be a fellowship meal (potluck)
				- They were eating selfishly
			c.  Problem was divisions, and factions, a lack of love (1 Cor 13)
		3.  Paul reminds them that Jesus said “this is my body”
			a.  v.27 - Eat in unworthy manner = guilty
			b.  How does one eat in an worthy manner? (v.28-29)
				- Examine self
				- Discern the body.  What is the body?
				- Context - 10:17-18 (all of chapter 10 about the body
						- chap 12 - all about “the body” & unity
			c.  1 Cor 12:12-13 - We all brought together in ONE body
				(Eph 2 - Jesus brought together one body, he the head)
		4.  v.33-34 - Paul’s exhortation
			a.  Discern body = waiting for one another
			b.  If so starved that want to pig out, eat before you come
				- Purpose is not to eat, but to fellowship
	C.  ILL:  When sit down at dinner table growing up
		1.  Expected a certain level of behavior
		2.  I can remember storming to the table, being disrespectful
		3.  Was sent to my room
		4.  If that what expected at Telgren table, anything less at God’s table?
	D.  Remember it is the Lord’s Supper, it is about his body
		1.  It’s not just between us and God
		2.  Some things to think about:
			a.  I will quit, and commune at home by myself
			b.  Sunday evening communion?  (Either all or none?)
			c.  Communion to shut ins?  (Significant number should go visit)
		3.  Not just between you and God, but us as well.
	E.  “God loves you”, should be followed up with,  “and I love you too”


Concl:
1.  This memorial Jesus gave us is rich with meaning
2.  Not meant to be an empty, dry, dead ritual
3.  Jesus is the bread of life, who give us life
4.  Jesus is our representative to God because he was a man
5.  Jesus brought us together to be his body

6.  Remember this, when Jesus says “This is my body”