[What greater memorial could have been put in place to remember our Lord’s death than that of the Lord’s Table?  Perhaps a great monument could have been erected, but even the best of monuments do not last forever.  Many a monument has been found buried in the dirt or hidden behind some wall, forgotten and buried through time.  Many a headstone in a graveyard has washed away, even when etched in granite, through the weathering of time.  But establish a memorial acted out regularly by faithful men and women, like this Lord’s Table, and now you have a self renewing memorial that will, and has endured through the ages.] 

Through the Lord’s Table we, 

A.     Look Back On Calvary’s Cross [- Notice the elements that are incorporated into this ordinance.] 

1.      The Suffering Of His Body (vs 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. – His Broken Body.] 

 [Bread is an incredible picture of Christ’s suffering – Think of what it takes to make bread.  The seed must be planted and it must germinate.  Then the tender plant must endure the frost and then the fragile state of its stem.  When it grows it produces its precious seed which must be harvested.  The seed must be violently separated from its stalk by some form of mechanical threshing.  The seed must then be ground into wheat and then the wheat kneaded into dough.  The dough is then cooked at a high temperature until it is baked into bread.  Then the bread must be broken to be eaten.]

[No greater image of the suffering of our Lord could have been provided than bread.  The Bible reminds us,]

[Isaiah 53:1-5 ¹ Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? ² For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. ³ 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. ⁴ Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. ⁵ 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.]

[What an incredible picture of our Lord’s suffering.  A simple piece of broken bread.]

2.      The Sacrifice Of His Blood (vs 25) [-  After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. – His Shed Blood.]   

[The wine also provides an incredible picture of the suffering of our Lord.  It is said that the vine that grows the grapes is pruned each year.  Not just lightly pruned by cut back so as to appear as if nothing but a mere stump each year.  Then when it grows it produces the grape, which is gathered and then is crushed to gather is precious juice.  The separation of the juice from the grape undeniable pictures the shedding of our Lord’s precious blood.  Again, the fruit of the vine demonstrates the violent suffering of our Lord.] 

3.      The Separation Of Them Both (John 10.15) [- Then at the Lord’s Table we partake of the bread and the juice separately.  The juice is in the cup the bread is broken alone. Our Lord gave the bread first and then the cup, representing the separation of the body from the blood.  This again is an undeniable picture of the death of our Lord and Savior.  A body without blood is a dead body.  A body cannot live without blood. The life of the body is in the blood.  Thus reminding us that our Lord laid down His life for His sheep (John 10.15)]

4.      The Sanctity Of The Body (vs 26; John 6.53-57) [- This is not our Lord’s physical body but the Church Body or fellowship. Through the death and burial of our Lord we now have a life giving feast, whereby our Lord said,]

[John 6:53-57 ⁵³ . . .  Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. ⁵⁴ Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. ⁵⁵ For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. ⁵⁶ He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. ⁵⁷ As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.]

[As we eat this bread and drink of this cup we are reminded that our spiritual life is linked to the body and blood of our Lord as much as our physical life is link to the nourishment of food and drink.  Our Lord Jesus Christ is our abounding life, without Him we would quickly die.]

[Secondly, there is the Community Of The Lord’s Table, we are reminded that we need the fellowship of the Church in order to grow and be strong in our Lord.  By partaking of the Lord’s table only in the fellowship of the Lord’s Church we are reminded that the Church is the Body of Christ and is important to our life in Christ.  We can no sooner live without the Church than we could live in Christ without our Lord’s body and blood; for without them we have no salvation.]

B.     Look Inward With Conviction (vs 26) [–  . . . ye do shew the Lord's death till he come.]- This Lord’s Table should cause you, 

1.      To Always Remember (Luke 22.19-20) 

[Luke 22:19-20 ¹⁹ And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. ²⁰ Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you. ]

[We all have the same problem.  That problem is retention. We have the natural human tendency of forgetting.  Perhaps we don’t always forget so much as the memory becomes cold and old to us.  And if the truth were admitted we would have to say our memories grow cold faster than we would like to admit.  Our Lord gave us this table of memorial so that we would never forget our Lord’s death.  So that we would never forget what he did for us and how much we needed Him to die for us.] 

2.      To Always Recast [- In this Lord ’s Supper we join with all the saints of God who have remembered at this table through ages gone by.  We join with the apostles John, Peter, Matthew, Mark, and Paul.  We join with John Bunyan, AW Tozer, DL Moody, and Mark DeHaan.  Through this table we join with countless untold martyrs through the ages who have remembered our Lord’s death with this memorial and then sacrificially surrendered their lives for the gospel of our Lord.  C.H. Spurgeon once said,] 

[Do you see what this communion really is? It is a bridge of diamonds; it springs from our Lord's death with one grand arch, and it spans the intervening space "till he come." Blessed are they that are treading that glorious bridge, and marching on, washed in the blood of his death, till they shall wear the white robes of his victory in the day of his appearing.[1]] 

[You have joined in the fellowship of the saints of old who have all taken from this table and proclaimed the death of our Lord.  Now, will you recast this fellowship to the next generation?  Will your life in Christ be found worthy of continuing the forward fellowship of this blessed table?  Or will you disgrace the memory and memorial of our Lord?  Lord forbid, that this memorial should cease with this generation, but let us faithfully remember our Lord’s sacrifice and surrender our lives for Him in exchange.] 

3.      To Always Regard (John 14.1-3; Rev 21.2) [- . . . Tell He Comes . . .  reminds us that our Lord is indeed coming again and we must always be ready.  Our Lord said,] 

[John 14:1-3 ¹ Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. ² In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. ³ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.]

 [This Lord’s Table ought to always remind you to keep yourself ready.  This table ought to place a heightened sense of expectancy within you, and anticipation of our Lord’s soon appearing.  So that you might be,]

[Revelation 21:2 ² . . . prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.]

[You should see the second coming of our Lord wrapped up in this Lord’s table.]

C.     Look Forward To His Coming – As you watch for His Coming consider, 

1.      Your Preparation (vs 27-28; Heb 5.11-14; 1 Pet 2.2; Eph 4.11-16) [– Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. ²⁸ But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. – Now what is this self judgment all about?  My friends this is speaking of the goal that is before us as we are looking forward to our Lord’s coming.  What does our Lord’s coming demand of us?  It demands our maturity and our good stewardship.] 

[Let us not be satisfied to be found as we are today or as we were when we first received our Lord Jesus Christ.  Don’t be satisfied to be found as a Babe in Christ.  Grow up in Jesus.  Strive to become full grown.  Strive to grow spiritually in your Lord.  Don’t let it be said of you what was said in,] 

[Hebrews 5:11-14 ¹¹ Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing. ¹² For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. ¹³ For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. ¹⁴ But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.]  [My Christian brother and sister, don’t be satisfied to just sit on your faith, but purpose to grow in your relationship with your Lord.  How do you grow?] 

a.       [Hunger for God’s Word] 

[1 Peter 2:2 ² As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:]

b.      [Aggressively Participate In Your Church] 

[Ephesians 4:11-16 ¹¹ And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; ¹² For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: ¹³ Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: ¹⁴ That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; ¹⁵ But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: ¹⁶ From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.]

[Let this Lord’s Table remind you of the incredible sacrifice our Lord has made for you and lead you to make willing sacrifices form Him in return.  Whatever you do for your Lord will not be forgotten or unrewarded when He return.] 

2.      Our Purpose [-  Our purpose is that all the world might join us at this Lord’s table.  Those who are lost cannot join us at this table, for it would do them no good.  They have nothing to remember and nothing to celebrate.  We must tell the story of Jesus in hope that they might be saved and might receive the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior.] 

CrossRoads Baptist, April 5, 2009