[RE]FOCUS Day 45
Week 7: Redeeming
Day 3: Lord’s Supper
By Pastor Chris Troxel
READ:
1 Corinthians 11:24–25 [Jesus] said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”
Stories are powerful. My great uncle shared with me once his story of becoming a pilot of a fighter-bomber during the Korean War. The way he shared with me about joining up and the missions he flew gave me a glimpse of a part of his life few people access. Imagine my devastation and my family’s when I discovered my notes and work for an assignment based on those conversations were all lost. Sometimes when we lose that which is precious, there is no restoration.
Now consider the reading from 1 Corinthians 11. When Paul wrote this, it had already been nearly 20 years since Jesus spoke these words. Don’t miss this: see how important the first Church held 1) the words of Jesus and 2) communion in particular. Paul writes these words to teach and correct. He passes on the words given to him by those who encountered firsthand, the apostles. Imagine the depth and emotion those eleven guys would have as they brought Paul into the experience. This is going through Paul’s head as explains why this meal is far more significant than the Corinthians are treating it. In their rush to outdo one another, they lost the reason why Jesus was calling them together in the first place.
Do we lose focus on what Jesus is up to in communion? What mixture of pride and doubt and darkness distracts and dilutes the gift God brings? That is the best news about communion, grace, and Jesus. Jesus redeems communion for you. Jesus redeems all your acts of faith in which you fumble, falter, and fail. Jesus’ right-ness continues to be yours because of grace through faith. The Spirit draws your eyes and faith back to the clarity of who God is and what He does for you in the person of Jesus. There may not be ways to recapture lost stories, but God has ways of restoring his lost, distracted people. Jesus redeems you, and his redemption continues to work to refocus your heart and faith. So the next time you come to the table, and you feel your devastation more than anything else, Jesus is present redeeming that moment, redeeming communion, redeeming you.
PRAY:
Jesus, thank You for the grace to begin again and again and again. Thank you for entrusting me with Your very self, even when I fall. Give me the awareness to give that grace to others who so desperately need it. Amen.
LIVE:
Jesus’ last meal on earth was with His closest friends who still did not grasp what was about to happen. He didn’t spend more time on lectures, He gave them what they needed: more of Himself. Who do you know, that may not get everything or anything about Jesus, but needs more of Him all the same?