The Lord’s Supper - An Occasion of Faith

Meals are opportunities for affirmation, appreciation and affection. A family will have a meal to celebrate when one of the children becomes twenty-one at which event the individual will be affirmed by the others, some means of appreciation will be arranged for the person, and expressions of affection will be made to him or her. The same three responses can occur at a wedding meal or at a retirement meal for a long-term employee. We know that an obvious feature of those occasions is that the people at the centre of the event are visible to the others and their presence is realised by the others. 

 

When we think of the Lord’s Supper, we recognise that it too is a meal in which affirmation, appreciation and affection should occur. Yet the fact is that the One receiving the affirmation, appreciation and affection from participants is not visible to them nor is there any observable indications of his presence. Still, those participating in the meal would say that Jesus is there. How can that be the case? What is needed in order for such an experience to be real for them? The answer to that question is faith. Without faith there cannot be a sense of Christ’s presence, nor can those participating engage in the meal with affirmation, appreciation and affection.

 

Of course, it needs to be said that such a claim is not suggesting that the Lord’s Supper is unique for faith. Instead it is a reminder that all aspects of the Christian life are only valid when faith is in operation. It is possible to say something true without faith, but that true statement is not a sign of spiritual health in the person saying it. It is even possible to say without faith something profound about God, but again such a statement by itself is not evidence of healthy spirituality. Without faith it is impossible to please God. 

 

Therefore we need to see if we have faith in Jesus, and not have merely opinions about Jesus or even opinions about faith in Jesus. After all, it is possible for a person to describe gold who has never touched the metal merely by repeating what others have said about gold or by describing the metal from a picture seen in a book. But one who has touched gold would sense if the one speaking about it had also really touched it.

 

Coming to faith involves consideration of Jesus

Every believer was at one time an unbeliever. The process of becoming a believer varies as far as believers are concerned. Some hear the gospel for years before it makes any impression whereas others respond to the gospel very quickly, almost immediately.  

 

Still, all who become believers have one thing in common and that is their consideration of Jesus as a possible Saviour of their souls. They hear details about Jesus in the gospel. Information is presented that explains his life and death and resurrection and ascension. They hear about the perfect life he lived and which is reckoned to the personal account of sinners when they trust in him. They also hear about his atoning death that he suffered on the cross when he paid the penalty for sin by bearing in himself the wrath of God. And they are told about his wonderful promised of pardon, of full forgiveness, of receiving eternal life. 

 

In a secret manner, the Holy Spirit works in their minds and hearts and enlightens them about who Jesus is and what he did. They cannot stop considering him and wondering if they are the kind of sinners that Jesus saves. As I said, this period of consideration of Jesus varies in length between people. Whatever the length, the main detail is that they are thinking about him and maybe seeking clarification about what the Bible says. Without them realising it, roots of what will yet be a fully-fledged faith are starting to appear. They may begin to wonder if they have believed.

 

Faith is personal commitment to Jesus Christ

At some point in their consideration of Jesus, they begin to depend upon Jesus. For some, this moment of commitment may be very identifiable – they can name the day and the hour when they crossed over from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light. Others are not aware of this precise moment, but they become aware that they have begun to depend on Christ for salvation. 

 

Commitment comes from looking to the Saviour. Paul came to that moment when, as he later put it, he committed himself to Christ against the Day of Judgement. He was led to trust in Jesus in the sense of depending on him alone for salvation. And they know that through faith in Christ they have been forgiven and brought into the family of God. The journey of faith has begun, but it has to continue, and develop, and persist. And how does it do that? Here are three aspects, and there are others, but we can think about the three.

 

Faith develops an ongoing contemplation of Christ

Almost half the human race at some stage experience a new way of thinking. Before then, they saw that there were men and women, but for some reason each of them starts thinking about one member of the opposite gender, and cannot stop doing so. Something similar, but much higher, occurs when a believer reveals his regeneration and his interests. He delights to think about Jesus and to express his gratitude to Jesus for his great salvation. He talks about Jesus as well as to Jesus and his heart is warmed by thinking about him.

 

Faith is a consumption of Christ. 

C. H. Spurgeon has a daily reading in which he uses our facial features to describe progress of faith in Christ or increase in intensity of one’s faith in the Saviour. As one reads the words of Spurgeon, one can almost imagine him working his way round his face in a mirror. He has four stages, as it were, in the development of faith and I think his method of illustration helps us to grasp how it happens. The stages may be chronological in the sense that with more spiritual experience, and by the enablement of the Holy Spirit, the believer learns how to believe better. Or the stages could be virtually simultaneous, happening one after the other quickly. First, he likens faith to hearing Jesus, then he likens it to watching or seeing Jesus, then he likens it to smelling Jesus (his fragrance), and then he likens it to tasting Jesus (relish). Do we know that kind of spiritual development? 

 

Of course, it has to be Jesus as he is revealed in the Biblical accounts. Take the occasion when we read about Jesus and the leper. We hear his answer to the leper’s petition for cleansing when he reveals his willingness to heal. Beautiful words. Then we watch and we see his incredible power and we are astonished as the leper ceases to be a leper. Then we smell his fragrance – the wonder of his loving kindness, it is heavenly. Then we taste his sweetness as we apply to ourselves his manner as well as his words. How he touched the leper, a little thing, but then we sense that everything he does is a big thing. The leper is stepping into the unknown, because he has never been there before, and that is often the way of faith. But to get the touch of the hand that controls the tiller of time is an amazing encouragement and source of strengthening.

 

Or take the evening when he instituted the Lord’s Supper. He had sent Peter and John to prepare the room, but he knew that Peter had not prepared his heart. Still, he insisted on washing his feet. He told Peter and the others that they would all forsake him that evening. Yet he also told them that he had intensely desired to be with them that night, to be with the failures. He could have held the Passover with Mary and Martha and Lazarus, or he could have held it with his family, because his mother was somewhere in Jerusalem. We hear him speak to the failures, and as we watch him hand the elements to the failures and say to them, ‘All of you drink of it,’ we smell his astonishing love, and we apply it ourselves because he treats all his people in the same gracious way, and his fruit becomes sweet to our taste. 

 

Think of the coming communion table. Your faith will hear his words of invitation, your faith will see him looking at you even as he looked at the disciples on the first occasion, your faith will smell the fragrance of the oil with which he has been anointed in heaven (the Holy Spirit) and your faith will taste the sweetness of his grace shown to you personally and to those who are sitting with you at the table.

 

Faith involves confessing Christ

Going to a meal such as a birthday or a wedding celebration says something about those attending it. It will be assumed automatically that they are connected to whoever is the main attraction at the occasion. That is also the case with those who come to the Lord’s table. Onlookers and other participants will assume that you are a confessor of Christ.

 

How does one confess Christ? Obviously verbally. Whatever else is involved, affirmation is essential. We stress that we are trusting in Christ. But what else is involved? No doubt other details could be mentioned but I would mention three, and they are mentioned because they are part of Christlikeness. They are lovingly, humbly and consistently. Those features should be present before participating in the meal, they should be present when participating in the meal, and they should be present after participating in the meal. Obviously, self-examination will tell us if they are present before taking part. 

 

The Lord’s Supper is an effective means of grace when used correctly by God’s people. They take part in faith, but it is an opportunity for adding to their faith, even in the way Peter instructed his readers to add several graces to their possession of faith. We can go through the list that he mentions: ‘For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love’ (2 Pet. 1:5-7).  

 

We are eating with Jesus, so progress should happen. Two that are obvious are brotherly affection and love. The Lord’s Supper is a family occasion, so brotherly affection and love should be strengthened. We cannot participate by faith if they are absent. It may also be the case that some persons are in the family, but have not yet revealed that they are. If you are in the family of God, you should tell others. Remember that Jesus himself wants you to be at his family table. So do the Lord’s people and they would encourage you to come, and be encouraged by your coming to the Table. So may the Lord enable such to do so, and may all at the Table know his blessing.