This do in remembrance of me
One author has written, “The name of Jesus is not so much written as it is plowed into the history of the world.” And it’s no wonder. He was born miraculously without an earthly father. He lived without sin. He was crucified without proper cause or formal accusation. He was raised from the dead without restraint; and today, sits on the right hand of God without an equal.
The story of Jesus is a love story composed of facts rather than fiction or fable. As a true story, it reaches back to the privacy of eternity; it is interwoven by prophecy, providence, and Jesus’ own presence in the history of man; it climaxes in a death, a burial, and a resurrection; it extends to the final destruction of this present world; and, it is a story that victoriously stretches throughout eternal bliss.
No wonder it has been heralded as the greatest story ever told. We honor this marvelous personality, this Jesus, the Son of God, each Lord’s Day by a memorial feast of His own choosing. It is a feast of simplicity without a chance for drunken revelries to tarnish its Divine purpose. With the simple emblems of unleavened bread and the fruit of the vine, Jesus set forth a means of keeping His memory alive until He comes again. It is a feast that every Christian of every social and ethnic strata can observe alike, without consideration of one’s own fame, power, or fortune. It is a feast that reminds us that the ground is level at the foot of the cross, and that all believers stand on equal terms in need of the marvelous sacrifice offered there.
This communion of which we eat is a memorial feast of the body and the blood of Jesus–a body that was suspended between heaven and earth—lifted up in crucifixion—that He might draw all men heavenward—-and a blood atonement for the sins of the world.
Matthew 26:26-30 (KJV) 26 “And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. 27 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; 28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. 29 But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom. 30 And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives.”
1 Corinthians 11:23-26 (KJV) 23 “For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread: 24 And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. 25 After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. 26 For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death till he come.”
As we each take the bread and the cup each first day of the week, we must do so in remembrance of that great love story of long ago that is just as fresh today, as the first time it was told. This bread is to us the body of the Lord. This fruit of the vine is to us His blood of the New Testament which was shed for many for the remission of sins.
“Wounded for me, wounded for me; There on the cross, He was wounded for me.”
The author can be reached for comments at 256-574-2489.
-Terry Broome