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PREACHING THE LORD'S MEAL
John Mark Hicks
ICS Annual Sermon Seminar
May 24-27, 1999
Introduction: "Sacrament"?
Fundamentally, Jesus Christ is the one "sacrament" of God. He is the mediator between God and humanity (1 Timothy 2:4-6). We access the Father through Jesus Christ by the Spirit (Ephesians 2:18). Sacramental theology, then, must be Christological. Sacramentally, God has given Christ to us through his gifts of baptism and the Lord's supper
"Sacrament" / Sign / Thing Signified / RelationBaptism / Water / Death and Resurrection / ???
Lord's Supper / Bread and Wine / The Body and Blood of Jesus / ???
The term "sacrament" originally referred to an oath or pledge which Roman soldiers took in devotion to the gods, but came to develop the meaning in the Latin (Roman Catholic) church of a "mystery" or a scared thing devoted to God. The Latin term was first used by Tertullian (d.220), but Origen (d. 254) used the Greek term "mystery" to characterize baptism and the Lord's supper. More magisterial (Lutheran, Reformed, Anglican) churches have retained the term "sacrament," but free church traditions (Mennonite, Baptist) generally use the term "ordinances" (commandments).
I use the term "sacrament" in the sense of a ritual gospel event which concretely re-presents God's work in Christ. "Sacraments" embody the gospel--the Christ Event. They visualize it for us. They have an objective character (the sign) which is linked to the spiritual reality (the thing signified, the gospel). The water and elements of the supper (unlike candles or incense) have a "sacramental" quality to them by virtue of their relation to the gospel. They objectively signify the gospel. But what is the exact relationship between the sign and thing signified?
"Sacramentalists" / Instrumentalists / SymbolistsBaptism / Baptismal Regeneration / Means of Grace / Sign of Thing Received
Lord's Supper / Real Presence / Spiritual Presence / Signs as Symbols
Theology / Divine Causation / Divine Mediation / Human Response
Scripture affirms an instrumentalist understanding of this relationship. Paul uses the instrumental dia (through) to reflect his baptismal understanding (Rom. 6:4; Titus 3:5). Baptism is the concrete means by which one enters into a saving relationship with Christ through faith in the gospel (in contrast, for example, to prayer). Baptism, as an expression of faith, is instrumental by virtue of the instrumental character of faith itself (Eph. 2:8; Col. 2:12) and the objective promise God has attached to this covenant ritual of baptism (Acts 2:38). We are saved by grace through faith by means of God's gracious working in baptism.
The Lord's supper is instrumental because the eating of the bread and the drinking of the wine is the communion of the believer with Christ (1 Cor. 10:16). This communion is through faith. The Lord's supper, like baptism, depends upon the instrumentality of faith. The blessings of baptism and the supper are not objectively "there" as if contained in the water and the bread, but are spiritual realities present through the objective acts of baptism and supper on the ground of God's promises and through faith in his work.
I. The Covenant Meal in Israel.
LORD'S SUPPER AS COVENANT MEAL
--The Old Testament Background--
Covenant Meal in the Clan (Gen. 31:45-55).
Call upon God as a witness between the parties of the covenant.
Swears an oath of loyalty to the covenant.
Sacrifices an animal before God.
Eats a meal to celebrate and seal the covenant.
Covenant Meal at Mount Sinai (Exodus 24:1-11).
God enters into covenant with Israel (Ex. 19).
The terms of the covenant are explained (Ex. 20-23).
The ten commandments are given (Ex. 20).
The "book of the covenant" is given (Ex. 21-23).
The covenant is ratified (Ex. 24).
The sacrifices are offered (Ex. 24:1-7).
The blood is sprinkled (Ex. 24:8).
The leaders eat a meal in the presence of God (Ex. 24:9-11).
Covenant Meal in the Sacrificial System (Lev. 3; 7:11-38).
Herd or Flock Animal Sacrificed (Lev. 3):
Worshipper brings the animal and kills it himself.
Priests sprinkle the blood on the altar.
The fat of the animal is burned on the altar as God's food (7:30).
The Meal (Lev. 7; eaten the same day, Lev. 22:29-30):
Includes cakes of bread made without yeast (7:12-13).
One cake of bread is for the priest (7:14).
The worshipper eats the meat of the sacrifice (7:15-16).
The breast and right thigh are eaten by the priest (7:34).
The meal included a drink as well (see Ps. 116:13-17).
Types of Fellowship or Peace Offerings (Lev. 7):
Thanksgiving (7:11-15).
Vow (7:16; cf. 22:18-23)
This Fellowship Meal is found at key redemptive-history events throughout the history
of Israel (1 Sam. 11:15; 2 Sam. 6:17; 1 Kings 8:63-64; 2 Chr. 29:31; 30:22; 31:2; 33:16 ; cf. Jer.
17:26).
This Fellowship Meal is found in the worship of Israel as reflected in the Psalms (Ps. 50:14,23;
56:12; 107:22; 116:17).
Covenant Meal in the Church: The Lord's Supper.
The Lord's supper is the New Covenant Meal (Luke 22:14-22).
It is a Fellowship with Christ's Sacrifice (1 Cor. 10:16-22).
It is the Fellowship of the Body of Christ (1 Cor. 11:17-34).
Covenant Meal in the Eschaton
Old Testament Expectation of this Meal (Is. 25:6-9).
Jesus' Expectation of this Meal (Matt. 8:10-12; Luke 13:28-30).
It is the Marriage Feast of the Lamb and his Bride (Rev. 19:7-9).
A. The Covenant Meal in Redemptive History.
1. Fulfilled in the Clan.
a. Genesis 31:22-55 provides an example of a covenant meal within a family clan. After God intervened, Laban offered to make a covenant with Jacob (v. 44). The covenant would be witness between Jacob and Laban of their peaceful relationship.
b. God would not only be a witness to the covenant, but a participant in blessing the parties involved as well as a judge between them (31:49-50,53). Both Laban and Jacob swore an oath, and a sacrifice was offered to enact the covenant which was followed by a meal to celebrate and confirm it.
c. The meal was a symbol of peace and mutual acceptance within the clan. It celebrated and sealed the peace which now existed between Laban and Jacob (cf. Gen. 26:28-31 for another example).
2. Fulfilled at Sinai.
a. The exodus was an act of God's grace by which he redeemed Israel from Egyptian bondage. Exodus 15 declares this redemptive act in song, and it is on this ground that Israel is invited into covenant with God.
b. Exodus 19-24 tells the story of how the nation of Israel entered into a covenant with God. God announces his intention to establish a covenantal relationship with Israel, and the people accept (19:3-8). The covenant is summarized in the Decalogue (20:1-17) and then explained more fully in the "book of the covenant" (chs. 21-23). Finally, the covenant is ratified through bloody sacrifices and a meal (ch. 24).
c. The covenant is ratified through burnt offerings and fellowship offerings (24:5). After the "book of the covenant" is read to the people, they profess their willingness to follow it, and Moses then sprinkles the "blood of the covenant" on the people (24:7-8). Through blood, God establishes covenant with his people (cf. Heb. 9:20-22). It is in the wake of this event that the leaders of Israel went up and "saw the God of Israel" (24:10). God does not reject nor consume them with his holiness, but rather accepts them into his presence on the ground of his gracious covenant of blood. On the mount, the leaders of Israel, in the presence of God, eat and drink. Exodus 24:11: "they saw God, and they ate and drank."
d. The significance of this statement is important. The God of Israel is a Holy God who cannot be approached by sinful human beings (cf. Ex. 33:20). But God establishes communion with his people through covenantal sacrifice. This communion is expressed by not only "seeing" God, but also sharing fellowship with him through a covenant meal. God becomes the God of his people through covenant, and this covenant is celebrated through a meal.
e. In Israel, "eating and drinking" within a sacrificial context, is eating and drinking "in the presence of God." God is present among his people as witness, judge and participant (cf. Ex. 18:12; Dt. 12:7,18; 14:23,26; 15:20; 27:7).
3. Fulfilled in Sacrificial System.
a. What is the importance of Old Testament sacrifices?
(1) Sacrifices were gifts offered to God which functioned to remove sin and sanctify a place/person for the presence of God. Sacrifices represented a life offered to God (Psalm 40; Hosea 6:6). They are the means by which the worshipper draws near to God and enters into communion with God's holy presence.
(2) The three major festival sacrifices are: sin offering, burnt offering and fellowship offering. Leviticus 9 provides the paradigmatic meaning of these sacrifices as they are offered when the priesthood of Aaron is inaugurated. The sin offering is the atonement offering; it expiates or removes sin (9:8-11). The burnt offering represents the consecration or dedication of the worshipper to God (9:12-14). The fellowship offering is an expression of the peace/fellowship or reconciliation that exists between God and the worshipper (9:18-21). In consequence of the three sacrifices, the glory of the Lord appeared to the people (9:22-24).
b. Leviticus 3:1-17; 4:10,26,31,35; and 7:11-38 describe the various types of "fellowship" offerings. This term is variously translated "fellowship," or "peace," or "well-being" (from the Hebrew term shalom, meaning wholeness or peace). It establishes fellowship through its expiatory significance (3:1-5 with 17:11) and exhibits fellowship (peace) between God and the worshipper through a covenant meal.
c. Of the four major sacrifices (burnt offering, sin, guilt and peace), this is the only offering where the worshipper eats part of the sacrifice himself. The sacrificial offering becomes a meal in which bread and drink are also present (cf. 7:12-15; Ps. 116:13-17). The meal celebrates the relationship between the participants in the meal, and everyone shares in this meal--the Lord (3:3-4), the priest (7:28), and the worshipper. It is a meal where God, the priest and the worshipper share shalom through the meal. It exhibits the harmony, peace and well-being of that relationship. The covenant is renewed through eating the sacrificial animal (cf. Ps. 50:5,14). The Passover itself may be regarded as a type of this sacrifice (Dt. 16:1-4).
d. The offering may have three different motivations, but they ultimately coalesce in the joy of a celebrative meal in the presence of God (Dt. 12:6-7; 27:7). It may be occasioned by a vow (Lev. 7:16; cf. Prov. 7:14), a freewill expression of happiness (Lev. 7:16), or a moment of thanksgiving (Lev. 7:12-15).
e. The thanksgiving offering is particularly prominent in the Psalms (cf. 50:14,23; 56:13; 107:22; 116:17-19). The sacrifice provides meat for the covenant meal, and the meal is the means by which fellowship is shared. The meal celebrates covenantal communion. Indeed, the fellowship offering was offered at key redemptive-historical events, such as covenant renewal at Mt. Ebal (Dt. 27:1-8; Jos. 8:30-35), coronations (1 Sam. 11:15; 2 Kgs. 11:14), the movement of the Ark to David's tent (1 Chr. 16:), the dedication of the altar (2 Sam. 24:25; 1 Chr. 21:25-22:1), the dedication of Solomon's temple (2 Chr. 5:12-13; 1 Kgs 8:63), covenant renewal under Asa (2 Chr. 15:8-15), purification of Hezekiah's temple (2 Chr. 29:27-31), Hezekiah's Passover (2 Chr. 30:22-27), dedication of Mannaseh's altar (2 Chr. 33:16) and the consecration of the walls of Jerusalem (Neh. 12:35-43). Given the redemptive-historical and communal character of this meal, its significance for the covenant between God and Israel cannot be overestimated.
f. The Old Testament does not explicitly identify many meals as "fellowship offerings" but this is what they probably are. For example, the offering of Hanna is no doubt a thanksgiving offering for the birth of Samuel (1 Sam. 1:24-25).
4. Fulfilled in the Church: The New Covenant Community.
a. This is Luke's emphasis in his depiction of the institution of the Lord's supper in Luke 22. We will look at this more closely in session II.
b. This is also Paul's understanding in light of his parallel with Old Testament sacrifices in 1 Corinthians 10. We will look at this more closely in session III.
5. Fulfilled in the Eschaton.
a. Isaiah 25:6-9 anticipates a day when God will wipe away every tear through swallowing up the disgrace of his people (NT applications of this text are 1 Cor. 15:54; Rev. 7:17; 21:4). That disgrace is the burial shroud which covers all people--it is death. On the day when God destroys death, he will celebrate with his people in an eschatological banquet with rich food and the best wine.
b. It will be a day of celebration when God has conquered all his enemies, and the last enemy is death. God can then offer the eschatological messianic banquet, and all of his people from all nations will sit down with each other to enjoy fellowship with their God and with each other (cf. Matt. 8:10-12; Luke 13:27-29). It will be a covenantal meal in which God will fully dwell with his people (Rev. 21:3).
B. The Theological Meaning of the Covenant Meal in Christological Perspective.
1. Covenantal Memory. When we remember Christ in the Lord's supper, we remember the covenant God has made with his people. The spiritual reality of this covenant is actualized for us through our remembering. Just as Israel remembered that they had been brought out of Egypt (Deuteronomy 16:1), so we remember we have been brought out of sin. It moves from a past memory to a present experience of the reality of God's grace. The bread and wine actualize the reality of salvation for us in the worship experience. There is a genuine experience of salvation when we eat and drink by faith. To remember God's work in Christ is to experience the reality of our covenantal fellowship with God. The spiritual reality of God's salvation is present through our remembering in the covenant meal. The Lord's supper, then, is a moment of grace when we receive it by faith through our memory of God's work for us. It is a proclamation of God's work. It is a re-presentation. We remember and bring into the present what God has done in the past.
2. Covenantal Renewal. When we eat and drink we renew our covenant with God. We pledge ourselves to keep the covenant. Just as Israel voiced its willingness to obey the covenant (Exodus 19-24), so we ratify the covenant in our life when we eat and drink. It is a moment of rededication and recommitment. In the context of the worship experience, we voice our commitment to live worthy of the gospel (cf. Phil. 1:27). We vow to take up our cross, call upon Jesus as Lord and follow him into the world as an obedient servant. The supper is the ritual moment when we renew the covenant vow we made in our baptism.
3. Covenantal Presence. God has always promised to live among his people and to be their God (cf. Gen. 17:7-8; Lev. 26:11-12; Jer. 11:4; 24:7). God is present among his people in the covenant meal--it is an eating and drinking in the presence of the covenant Lord (Ex. 18:12; Dt. 12:7,18; 14:23-26; 15:20; 27:7; 1 Chr. 29:22). The presence of God in the meal, in the tabernacle, in the temple is a covenantal presence. This presence is found in the church through the indwelling Spirit by whom we are the temple of God (1 Cor. 3:16; 6:19; 2 Cor. 6:16), and by whom the Living Lord is present through faith (Eph. 3:16,17). The church is the habitation of God through the Spirit (Eph. 2:22). In the covenant meal, the body and blood of Christ are present through the Spirit who lifts us up to feed on Christ and share the spiritual reality rooted in Christ. As we worship in the Spirit (Phil. 3:3), Christ is present through the covenant meal. Christ is present, not "in" the bread or wine, but he is present "at the table".
4. Covenantal Fellowship. The covenant meal symbolizes and mediates the fellowship between God and his covenant people. It is an objective moment of assurance, fellowship and peace. It testifies to the reconciliation which God has enacted and the peace which exists between God and the redeemed, and between the redeemed. It is a moment of joy, communion and thanksgiving. The people of God celebrate their reconciliation by God's work; they rejoice in the redemptive work of God for them. The covenant meal is a Eucharist, a thanksgiving, which assures the worshipper of God's love and redemptive work. As surely as one eats and drinks through faith, so also one certainly participates in God's salvation and in the community of God. The Lord's supper is not something to be avoided in times of doubt and uncertainty; it is a gracious gift to be received by faith where doubt and uncertainty can be eradicated by the testimony of God's covenant in the meal. It is a testament of his love. It is a moment of communal fellowship between God and his community. It is a moment of communion with the risen Lord at whose table we eat and drink. It is God's sensible (empirical) pledge of his covenant loyalty.
5. Covenantal Promise. The new covenant meal is one of hope and expectation. We live in the light of God's revelation of the end of history--he showed us what the end of history is through the resurrection of Jesus. The Lord's supper, then, is a celebration of God's victory over death through Jesus. It is not a funeral, but a celebratory affirmation of hope in a tragic, fallen world. Through the covenant meal we proclaim our faith in God's eschatological promises, and we anticipate the messianic banquet in God's eschatological kingdom. As we eat and drink now, we eat and drink in the hope of eating and drinking with Jesus in the fullness of his kingdom.
C. Homiletic Suggestions.
1. General Ideas.