Friday, January 20, 2017
1 Corinthians 11:27-30 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep.
GOD'S SERVANT'S PRESCRIPTION FOR SINNERS
When a person gets sick, the doctor doesn't just haphazardly prescribe just any medicine, but when he has seen the symptoms and tested he then carefully prescribes the right medicine for the right person at the right time.
The Great Physician, our Lord Jesus, has also prescribed a spiritual medicine for His earthbound people. It is the Lord's Supper, and its purpose is to strengthen and sustain the faith of His people.
The Sacrament of Holy Communion was given to keep us spiritually healthy, not to reserve us for judgment. For this reason, we want to make sure that those who take of the bread and wine recognize that they receive the body and blood of Jesus who died on the cross for their sins. We want to make sure that they do not partake in a careless or faithless way to their harm.
For this reason, we do not commune those who do not believe or who defend some unbiblical teaching, those who do not understand that Jesus body and blood are present, or those living in open sin and unrepentant. This isn't "good 'ole boy clubhouse Christianity." We are earnestly and honestly concerned about their souls, for God's Word warns us in the above passages.
Unfortunately, some Christians accuse us of being unloving exclusivists because of our spiritually careful and loving practice. They mistakenly think that our practice says they are not going to heaven because they are not members of our church. Or they imagine we look down on them as "second rate Christians" by not admitting them to the Lord's Supper.
The truth is, it is love that will not allow us to be careless about this Spiritual prescription, lest some receive a medicine that isn't right for them.
