The Lord’s Supper: Mark 14:22-26

Text: “And as they did eat, Jesus took bread and blessed, and brake it, and gave to them, and said, Take, eat: this in My body.”

Mark 14:22.

Good morning, Christ-remembering Christian!  In church services, or family gatherings, when we are walking worthily of the Lord God in obedience, we partake of an ordinance we call ‘The Lord’s Table’, or ‘The Lord’s Supper’ – we do so at all times as a remembrance of Calvary and what the Living Lord Jesus has done for us, ‘His people’ there. 

His Body has been broken for us; He has suffered God’s penalty for our sin, and died in our place; He has taken the full penalty of all our sins upon Himself; He has borne our sins away like the scapegoat of old; He has washed His elect people totally clean in His own shed Blood of Atonement.  How could we EVER forget that He has wrought this great Eternal Salvation of sinners such as we?  Glory, all glory, to the Lamb of God Who taketh away the sins of ‘His people’!

“And she (Mary) shall bring forth a son, and thou (Joseph) shalt call His Name JESUS: for He shall save His people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:21)

“And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission (of sins).” (Hebrews 9:22)

On the night Christ Jesus established The Lord’s Table/Supper remembrance meal, He was betrayed by one of His own disciples, Judas Iscariot. One of the vilest ways in which you and I, as Christian believers, can ‘betray’ the Son of God today, is to cease to respect and believe His written Word; cease to have close fellowship with Him in prayer; and fail to tell others of His great Salvation Sacrifice on Calvary’s Cross.  In what manner are you and I betraying King Jesus Christ today?

“If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: but if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the Blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.” (1 John 1:6-7)

Let us, who wish to be faithful to God’s Word and will, clearly establish the fact that The Lord’s Table/Supper is at all times an ordinance of remembrance of what Christ did for us on Calvary’s cruel Cross on the day of His Crucifixion.  There are NO MEANS OF GRACE in this Christian ordinance!  Partaking in this sacred remembrance service will NOT heal the sick; and certainly, will not benefit unsaved souls one iota or put them in a better position to receive God’s grace in Salvation.  Fact.  The Lord’s Table is exclusively an ordinance service for Spiritually regenerate (born again) souls to partake in.  All others eat unworthily to the damnation of their never-dying souls.  Beware! The Lord’s Table is a serious ordinance! “Wherefore whosoever shall eat of this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep (die).” (1 Corinthians 11:27-30)

J.C. Ryle Comments:

“These verses contain St. Mark’s account of the institution of the Lord’s Supper. The simplicity of the description deserves special observation. Well would it have been for the Church, if men had not departed from the simple statements of Scripture about this blessed sacrament! It is a mournful fact that it has been corrupted by false explanations and superstitious ad­ditions, until its real meaning, in many parts of Christen­dom, is utterly unknown. Let us however, at present, dismiss from our minds all matters of controversy, and study the words of St. Mark with a view to our own personal edification.

“Let us learn from the passage before us, that self-examination should precede the reception of the Lord’s Supper. We cannot doubt that this was one object of our Lord’s solemn warning, “One of you which eateth with me shall betray me.” He meant to stir up in the minds of His disciples, those very searchings of heart which are here so touchingly recorded: “They began to be sorrowful, and to say unto Him one by one, Is it I? and another said, Is it I?” He meant to teach His whole Church throughout the world, that the time of drawing near to the Lord’s table should be a time for diligent self-inquiry.

“The benefit of the Lord’s Supper depends entirely on the spirit and frame of mind in which we receive it. The bread which we there eat, and the wine which we there drink, have no power to do good to our souls, as medi­cine does good to our bodies, without the cooperation of our hearts and wills. They will not convey any blessing to us, by virtue of the minister’s consecration, if we do not receive them rightly, worthily, and with faith. To assert, as some do, that the Lord’s supper must do good to all communicants, whatever be the state of mind in which they receive it, is a monstrous and unscriptural figment, and has given rise to gross and wicked superstition.

“The state of mind which we should look for in ourselves, before going to the Lord’s table, is well described in the Catechism of the Church of England. We ought to “ex­amine ourselves whether we repent truly of our former sins, whether we steadfastly purpose to lead a new life, whether we have a lively faith in God’s mercy through Christ, and a thankful remembrance of His death, and whether we are in charity with all men.” If our conscience can answer these questions satisfactorily, we may receive the Lord’s supper without fear.” (J.C. Ryle’s Exposition of Mark’s Gospel)

So often we learn of erring Protestant ministers running to the death-beds of parishioners to administer a piece of bread and a thimble of wine/juice to the dying person.  What utter Popery!  Roman Catholicism teaches another Gospel in which there are three means of Salvation – infant baptism, confirmation, and extreme unction (the last rites). Let us not practice such false ordinances; let us be faithful to God’s word, and be ‘born again’.

Thought: Spiritual baptism, Spiritual confirmation: remember, Calvary is complete!