Keeping Communion in the Right Place

How to Neither Over, or Under, Dramatize the Lord's Supper

Howdy,

This will be our last look at the Lord’s Supper before we move off to the Lord’s Day and the blessings of the Sabbath in the next section of the directory. There is a logic to how the DPW treats the sacraments and their observance in public corporate worship before taking on the question of the fourth commandment and the time given over by God for its celebration. Our focus today is going to be two-fold. In one part we will examine the movements and in another what we understand happens when we set apart the elements of bread the cup in the meal.

Here's the section of the DPW to get us started:

The elements being now sanctified by the word and prayer, the minister, being at the table, is to take the bread in his hand, and say, in these expressions, (or other the like, used by Christ or his apostle upon this occasion:)

“According to the holy institution, command, and example of our blessed Saviour Jesus Christ, I take this bread, and, having given thanks, break it, and give it unto you; (there the minister, who is also himself to communicate, is to break the bread, and give it to the communicants;) “Take ye, eat ye; this is the body of Christ which is broken for you: do this in remembrance of him.”

In like manner the minister is to take the cup, and say, in these expressions, (or other the like, used by Christ or the apostle upon the same occasion:)

“According to the institution, command, and example of our Lord Jesus Christ, I take this cup, and give it unto you; (here he giveth it to the communicants;) This cup is the new testament in the blood of Christ, which is shed for the remission of the sins of many: drink ye all of it.”

After all have communicated, the minister may, in a few words, put them in mind,

“Of the grace of God in Jesus Christ, held forth in this sacrament; and exhort them to walk worthy of it.”

The minister is to give solemn thanks to God.

What does it mean when the DPW says the minister has sanctified the elements? That sounds almost Roman Catholic, or to use a big word sacerdotal. We can confuse things if we think the minister himself has power to sacramentize the bread and make it somehow overtly holy in and of itself. In the Romish world the priest in his prayers changes the bread and cup hocus pocus into the actual body and blood of our Lord in a fleshly, tangible sense. When we think about what I do or any Protestant pastor does in setting apart the elements from their common use to this special use it is not some kind of magic act. The bread remains bread and the cup the cup.

A biblical example of this is the showbread in the Temple. When David and his friends were in need of something to eat they ate the showbread with profit in 1 Samuel 21 because while it was sanctified by the priests for use in the Temple it did not cease to be bread whose main purpose was to feed hungry people, something Jesus commends in Mark 2 when defending the way He and the disciples had eaten of the grains on the Sabbath as they walked by the field. While in God’s purposes the bread was set out in accordance with His instructions in Exodus 25 we are to understand that David and his compatriots in no way violated the law of God in what they did primarily for the reason that God made bread for man, not man for bread.

This is not to say of course that there is nothing holy about the table meal. Whereas we are to be careful not to careful not to overdo it with the mystical nature of the Lord’s Supper, neither are we to underplay it either. Here we can go to the words of Paul in 1 Corinthians 11 and his condemnation of the people at Corinth when they treated Communion as a common meal where they were we getting drunk and engorging themselves on the elements. We can fall into this sin not so much in that we take more than one thimble of juice and a handful of shortbread. It is in not preparing spiritually to benefit from the sacrament which is far more likely in our own personal experiences. If we do not take the time to consider afresh what the shed blood and broken body of our Savior represents for our redemption and eternal life than we are doing no different than the Corinthians whom Paul excoriated rightly for their lack of decorum and faith.

As far as the movements of the observation of the Supper the DPW we see the elements after they are set apart the minister reading not only the words of institution found in the gospels, but Paul’s restating of them in the aforementioned 1 Corinthians 11. God in His grace uses these times of remembrance to warm our affections towards Jesus and all He has done for us. It is a keen time for the Holy Spirit as well to prick our hearts towards confession of sin and to comfort us in peace of the forgiveness of transgressions. Each time this is done should almost be like the first time. There should be a freshness present in our hearts and souls as we partake of the Table.

In closing, the Lord’s Supper is often despite its importance not given the proper time that it needs in our spiritual life. Even if you only do it every other month like we do at Bethany there is a sense in which it can become a rote event that is like just another thing we do in the life of the church, no more vital than an offering or a word from a missionary. Something good, and praise worthy, but not life-changing. It would be wise for all of us before we come, and as the date of our next observance draws near to place it on the calendar in front of us that we might be in prayer and preparation, and might give Communion not just its rightful place, but that we may spiritually benefit from this sacramental time of the exhibition of the love of Christ for us.

Another commentary:

https://www.reformation21.org/blog/communing-with-christ-in-the-supper

Blessings in Christ,

Rev. Benjamin Glaser

Pastor, Bethany ARP Church