Bible Study Fall 2005

            When Pastor Dan said we were going to study Holy Communion at Bible Study, I thought to myself well that should only take a couple of weeks.  After all, we all know that we take Communion in remembrance of Jesus.  Well, it turned out there was a lot more to know about the sacrament and through the study we all obtained a deeper understanding of Communion.

            The sacraments were instituted by Christ and given to the church. The Latin word sacramentum means vow or promise.  A sacrament is a sign-act in which God uses tangible things as instruments of grace including words, actions and physical elements.  Holy Communion focuses on the self-giving of Holy God, which makes the sacrament an occasion of grace and focuses on our communion with God and with one another. The grace of God is made available to us through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus and works in our lives through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. 

            We believe we are sinners constantly in need of divine grace. God is gracious, loving and always making available the grace we need.  Grace is God’s love towards us. 

            In our study, we talked about five different types of grace.  Prevenient grace means that which comes before anything we can do to help ourselves.  God seeks us out and calls us to come into the loving relationship that we were created to enjoy.  Convicting grace makes us conscious of our sinfulness and urges us to repent.  Justifying grace forgives and puts us into right relationship with God.  Sanctifying grace helps us to grow in holiness of life.  Perfecting grace molds us into the image of Christ.  We can receive, live and grow in divine grace by reading the Word, searching the scriptures and through fellowship and prayer. 

            The Christian life is a journey and Holy Communion nourishes us in that journey.  The grace we receive at the Table helps to make us whole and enables us to continue Christ’s work in this world. 

            Matthew 18:20 states, “ where two or more are gathered in My name I am there in the midst of them.” This verse assures us that Jesus is present when we receive communion.  He is the Host who invites us to the Table. Anyone who seeks His grace and is moved by the Holy Spirit and honestly responds to the invitation is welcome to take part in the sacrament.  “By Water and the Spirit” says: “ because the table at which we gather belongs to the Lord, it should be open to all who respond to Christ’s love, regardless of age or church membership. 

There are at least six major ideas about Holy Communion in the New Testament.       (1). Act of thanksgiving: At communion, we express thanks for God’s mighty acts,

 Creation, covenant, redemption and sanctification.

(2)    Communion of the church: the gathered community of the faithful, both local and universal.

(3)    Remembrance, commemoration and memorial: “ Do this in remembrance of Me”

(4)    Type of sacrifice: A re-presentation of the sacrifice of Christ.

(5)    Vehicle of God’s grace through the action of the Holy Spirit: “Pour out your Holy Spirit on us gathered here, and on these gifts of bread and wine.”

(6)    Eschatological (having to do with the end of history). “ Christ has died; Christ is risen, Christ will come again.”

By participating in the Invitation, Confession and Pardon, we are assured of the forgiveness of our sins. This assurance is God’s gift to us enabling us to continue striving to live faithful lives.

The Prayer of Great Thanksgiving is addressed to God and recognizes the full triune nature of God. The prayer is addressed to “Father (God) Almighty, creator of heaven and earth. Following the sanctus (Holy, Holy, Holy….) the working of the second person of the Trinity is proclaimed “and blessed is your son Jesus Christ.” The presence and work of the Holy Spirit is invoked in the portion beginning “ Pour out your Holy Spirit on us gathered here and on these gifts.”

The elements of communion include the table, bread and red wine or juice. The table should face the congregation so the people can visually if not physically gather around it.  Bread was used in both the Old and New Testaments to signify God’s sustenance of human beings and the importance of our eating together.  The whole loaf of bread signifies the unity of the church as the body of Christ and when it is broken and shared it represents our fellowship in that body. In the Old Testament, blood represented the covenant.  At the Last Supper, Christ spoke of the wine as his blood, the blood of the new covenant between God and God’s people.  The juice of the red grape in a common cup represents the church’s covenant with Christ which was made possible by his death and resurrection.  We respect these elements because God is using them for a holy purpose.

The next time we have Communion we will approach the table with a better understanding of the significance of what we are participating in. It is not just a script but a sign of community and mutual love between Christians throughout the church. We are sent from the Table to be in ministry as Christ’s presence in the world.