The Lord of all glory gives us of Himself that we might be nurtured. He nurtures us that we might perpetuate His example of selfless giving and nurture the world. At this table we are reminded and exhorted to serve one another just as we have been served by Christ. This table is the giving of the Son for a holy people: a people made holy by the One who is altogether Holy. We do not weep at the table of a dead Savior, but we rejoice in the presence of an Exalted Lord. Let us rejoice as we dine with our Lord.
Communion Meditation: Fed at the Table
God is the author of history, so He directs history in his good pleasure. He places redeemed men and women in His world to walk accordingly. He demands that we exercise a faithful presence. And to prepare us to walk worthily of His calling, He feeds us at His Table. The mouths of infants who proclaim his praise, as David says, are mouths that need to be fed. The mouths of men and women who sing and declare his glory are mouths that need to be fed. If you are baptized in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit you are called this morning to be fed by the Lord who endured all things for our sake.
Communion Meditation: A Table for the Humble
This meal is a humbling meal for the people of God. It strikes at the very root of human pride. After all, God does not give us crumbs, but the very best of his children.
In this memorial, we are reminded of the sacrifice of our Lord for us, and God is reminded of His promises to us through His Son; the promise to nurture us every time we meet as a body of worshippers.
The Table humbles sinners. The Table instructs the humble by gracing them through this means. Jesus Christ, the Only Son of God, died and rose again for our justification that we should be seated at this table together with other justified saints, humbled by the cross, and exalted by the resurrection.
Communion Meditation: Exuberant Joy
“Feasting is for Joy,” Solomon says. The message is then that this holy feast, the greatest of all Christian feasts, is a feast where joy ought to be prominent. This is what we are called to do. For those of you who are visiting, you are going to see and hear us enjoy each other’s company and greet each other, and this should be a testimony to you that God delights in the joy of his children. Those who are forgiven are forgiven to rejoice in that forgiveness. What we do together in this meal is marked by an exuberant joy; a joy given by Our Host, Jesus Christ.
Exhortation: The Meal of Friends
Friendship with God means a place at his table. A good friend shares his best. But not only does a friend share the best of his food, but also his company is pleasing to all. He speaks with his friends. He smiles and cherishes their presence. At this table, we are renewing covenant with one another and with our Covenant host, the Lord Jesus Christ. We are stating to the world that friendship with the Son of God entails responsibilities, but also an abundant joy. We are declaring to one another that this body is grounded in love, and in sharing this meal together we are renewing that communal love once more. So, come and taste of the friendship of our Lord.
Exhortation: Blessed are the Hungry
Human history begins in hunger, and hunger—whether for bread or for land or for glory or for God—motivates much of human history. Hunger is a sign of our radical dependence. This is why Jesus says: “Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied.” What are we hungry for? The Bible calls us to hunger after righteousness, after the One who is Righteous. Jesus calls us today, for He knows and we must know that we are dependent on the food He gives us at His table.[1]
[1] See Leithart, Blessed are the Hungry, 147
Communion Meditation: Being Changed
In Perelandra, C.S. Lewis’s protagonist says of his friend Ransom, who has recently returned from another planet, “A Man who has been in another world does not come back unchanged.” If we think of the glory of heaven where Christ is presently at the right of the Father and if we acknowledge that we are a people who have been transferred from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light, we will be changed. We were in one world, and now we are a part of a new world. If we come this realization, we will “no longer fill our stomachs with stale leftovers and scraps fallen to a dirty kitchen floor. We will smell the banquet being prepared for us. We won’t spoil our appetites with food from the table of fools. We know what our mouths are watering for.”[1] We know today that God gives us more that we can ask or think, and we are being changed more and more as we feast with this abundant God in the kingdom of light.
[1] Randy Alcorn, Eternal Perspectives, 181.
Communion Meditation: Wisdom in the Flesh
Brothers and sisters, this table is for the wise. But wisdom is not defined by a university professor, but by our Lord. Jesus gives wisdom without regard to status and age. He gives wisdom to little infants, and to all who seek him. “Seek wisdom, and you shall find it,” is the promise of Solomon. Solomon is not just some random wise king in history, he is in fact a picture of the greater Solomon. Solomon’s wisdom points us to the wisdom of Jesus who did not count himself to be wise in the eyes of the world, but who became wisdom in the flesh.
Communion Meditation: Finding Favor with God and Man
Brothers and sisters, by eating and drinking together we are finding favor with God and man. With God, because we are not rejecting the manna sent from heaven. With man, because we are eating with another, which implies a communion. When we eat and drink together we are not just a part of a meal, we are part of one another. This also implies that we are at peace with one another; that we have been reconciled with one another, and that we are cleansed by the same God who feeds us.
Communion Meditation: Eating Wisdom
Brothers and sisters, in the sermon I spoke of the necessity of wisdom as a way of life. Wisdom entails good habits. One of our habits is to eat together, because food unites us around one common purpose. As we eat and drink, we are seeking wisdom from God Himself who gives us freely all things to enjoy.