Sunday, March 05, 2006
Unworthy
Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. (1 Corinthians 11:27-28)
What is an “unworthy manner?” When we examine ourselves, we will find sin. What should keep one from partaking in the Lord's Supper?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
I have always thought if I had a problem of some kind with a brother or sister in the church(or anyone, for that matter)I would be partaking in an unworhty manner unless I first worked it out with that person. Otherwise, how could I expect the Lord to commune with me when I am a sinful person?
Catholic doctrine is that an "unworthy manner" is where you do not percieve the body and blood of Christ. . .thus your faith results in the transubstantiation of the host and wine. . .
When I was with the church of Christ, I was always troubled with the fact that many many people (i daresay MOST?) of the people in the congregation were preoccupied with a dozen other things besides thinking of the sacrifice of Christ. I was always appalled by the individuals that would start shuffling thru their purses or wallets for gum or their contribution AS SOON AS the bread was consumed. Not much time for discerning yourself, or reflecting upon the sacrifice of Christ, huh?
One of the biggest problems that I had with my experience with the church of CHrist, was that they TAUGHT that the Lord's Supper was SUPPOSED to be the focal point of the worship service. . .in fact, the PRIMARY reason that the assembly occured on Sunday, but in REALITY it was an addendum to the worship service. . .almost a footnote, with the sermon being the focal point.
I am by no means saying that this is true of every congregation or every member of every congregation, but after having been in congregations all over the country, it certainly appeared to be the rule, rather than the exception. If this is NOT the case at McKnight Road, that is one more thing to be thankful for there!!
3q
I know that this is something I think about because I work in the control room on Sunday mornings and during that time I am either turning down heat or turning up the heat, checking to make sure that the sound level is correct and or that the correct slide is showing. I do try to take time during the prayer to focus on what Jesus did for me and what he went thru but at times it is hard, because so many other things are going on.
Lisa, (and others),
would it then be the christian's responsibility to refrain from partaking the LS at that particular time (maybe waiting for the evening service, or skipping the week altogether)? If the Bible teaches that taking in a "worthy manner" is so very critical, then wouldn't refraining from partaking be preferrable to "eating or drinking damnation"?
3q
In what manner could we approach the throne of God in a worthy manner? If I were to wait until I felt worthy to take the Lord's Supper and I felt I was at peace with everyone, I'm not sure I would ever take the Lord's Supper. We can never earn the right to join Jesus' table -we humbly accept his invitation to join him.
I think the unworthy manner Paul is talking about in 11:27-29 comes from the earlier verses. (I've heard whenever you read 'Therefore' in the Bible, you need to back up and read before.)
Looking at v. 17-21 you see the Church in Corinth is more concerned with their own needs and wants instead of fellowship with one another and focusing on Christ. They are using communion to glorify themselves instead of God.
The Lord's Supper is about Christ, and when we approach his table we need to humble ourselves. Any way we give ourselves the glory and honor, and take it away from Jesus, I think is an unworthy manner.
jt
Post a Comment