As I Come to The Lord’s Table

If God’s people would take their
Bibles and turn to 1 Corinthians 11, I was in seminary the first
time that I heard this concept. We’ll be in 1 Corinthians for
only a moment because we’re going to do what John MacArthur calls
selected scriptures, which means we are going to fly around the
Bible tremendously. I used to take interest whenever
I would see one of these sermons that didn’t have a passage appended
to it, and it just would say selected. And John MacArthur,
as only John MacArthur can do, literally went into a passage
and then went through about 97 other passages. We’re not going
to do 97 today. But I will tell you, it’s a fascinating
thing. I’ve heard several people pray
for the sermon today. Most sermons are probably 90%
my words, kind of taking God’s word, the other 10% and expositing
that. Today, it is just the opposite.
I want to give very little commentary, but I want to look at a lot of
different scripture. And to begin with, I want to
take us back because we had just walked through 1st Corinthians
11, and some of these thoughts will be fresh in your minds. And in 1st Corinthians 11, Paul
is discussing the Lord’s Supper, and it was quite abused in Corinth. We’ve dealt with all that, and
I’m not going to circle back and unpack any of that today. I want to go back just to Paul’s
description of the Lord’s table as the Lord himself had delivered
it to him. Even as we talked, you might
recall, we tend to think that the Gospels were written first.
They weren’t. First Corinthians probably was
one of the first epistles written. And so when Paul says, I receive
from the Lord, This means that Paul either had a vision or a
special revelation or some kind of a conversation with God that
unfolded all of these things, how that scene in the upper room
played out. And so Paul was the first one
to write about the Lord’s table, not the last as we tend to think
of it. So Paul lays out before us what
God had presented to him, what Jesus Christ had laid out to
him, and we will take it from there and dive into a number
of other passages. If you would, just scroll down
to verse 23, where this declared memorial is presented. Paul says, for I received from
the Lord that which also I delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus,
in the night in which he was betrayed, took bread. And when
he had given thanks, he broke it and said, this is my body,
which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me. In the same way, He took the
cup also after supper, saying, this cup is the new covenant
in my blood. Do this as often as you drink
it in remembrance of me. For as often as you eat this
bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until
he comes. What Paul says there, is that
believers, as they gather to celebrate the Lord’s table, are
in obedience to him, honoring his command to celebrate this
rich supper that he had prepared for
his disciples, his closest friends, And he commands them to celebrate
this. This is a perpetual celebration
in the church, as we saw. But he says that as often as
you do this, you are proclaiming the Lord’s death. And it made
me think how seldomly, and I’m just, you might have even noticed
in your bulletin, that I put it in the first person. As I come to the Lord’s table,
And so I’m gonna continue to speak in the first person. I
think of how seldomly I think of all the implications of what
we’re doing. Do I think of the fact that we
are proclaiming the Lord’s death until he comes? And so, just
during the course of the week, I began to meditate on these
things, and that’s what I’m gonna ask you to do today, is just
think on these things, Think on these truths that attend to
the communion table, that are fully a part of what it is we
celebrate. But so often we celebrate the
Lord’s table without thinking on these things, without meditating
on them. And so I want to walk us through
some of these meditations, some of these things that we proclaim. First of which, as I come to
the Lord’s table, I remember what my Savior’s suffering for
my sin fulfilled. I remember what my Savior’s suffering
for my sin fulfilled. It fulfilled the prophecy of
a suffering Savior. Would you turn first to Isaiah
chapter 52? I had a conversation with a friend
this week, and I mentioned during the course of that conversation
that Isaiah 53, which passage we’re so familiar with about
Christ, the suffering Savior, Isaiah 53 actually starts in
Isaiah 52. And it starts in verse 13, where
we see the servant’s astonishing reception. This is the suffering
servant, and this is the servant that the Jews knew they were
going to have, but did not figure him to be the Messiah. They did
not figure on a suffering Savior to be their Messiah. Look at
verse 13. Behold, my servant will prosper. He will be high and lifted up
and greatly exalted. Just as many were astonished
at you, my people, so his appearance was marred more than any man,
and his form more than the sons of man. Thus he will sprinkle
many nations, kings will shut their mouths on account of him,
for what had not been told them they will see, and what they
had not heard they will understand. Those opening lines, My servant
will prosper. He will be high and lifted up
and greatly exalted. That’s what they expected when
he arrived. But it was at the end of Christ’s
earthly ministry that he was high and lifted up. It was after
he came and accomplished his suffering among men. And so we come into Isaiah 53,
not only the servant’s astonishing reception, but the servant’s
astounding rejection. This is what Christ faced. Verse one, who has believed our
message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? For
he grew up before him like a tender shoot and like a root out of
parched ground. He has no stately form or majesty
that we should look upon him, nor appearance that we should
be attracted to him. He was despised and forsaken
of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And like
one from whom men hide their face, he was despised and we
did not esteem him. This is Isaiah’s description
of Christ’s arrival to the nation of the Jews and how they responded
to him. It was an astounding rejection,
almost from the very start. And then ultimately, ultimately
it ended with his crucifixion. And so we see, beginning in verse
four, not only the servant’s astonishing reception and astounding
rejection, but the servant’s amazing suffering. This is almost
indescribable. Verse four, surely our griefs
he himself bore, and our sorrows he carried, yet we ourselves
esteemed him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he
was pierced through for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. The chastening for our well-being
fell upon him, and by his scourging, we are healed. All of us, like
sheep, have gone astray. Each of us has turned to his
own way. But the Lord has caused the iniquity
of us all to fall on him. He was oppressed, and he was
afflicted. Yet he did not open his mouth,
like a lamb that is led to slaughter, and like a sheep that is silent
before its shearers. So he did not open his mouth.
By oppression and judgment, he was taken away. And as for his
generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land
of the living for the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke
was due? His grave was assigned with wicked
men, yet he was with a rich man in his death, because he had
done no violence, nor was there any deceit in his mouth. This
speaks of Christ’s redemption. This is Christ paying for our
sin, stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted for our transgressions,
for our iniquities, for our well-being. And so this Lord’s Table, it
is a remembrance of that. It’s a remembrance, we can’t
help but remember our sin. That’s one of the most vexing
elements of our sin, our previous sin, is we can’t forget it. Even if God has forgiven it,
we can’t forget it. What we can do is remember that
Christ paid for it. Well, not only the servant’s
astonishing reception, astounding rejection, awesome sacrifice,
but we also see, pardon me, we also see in verse 10 his awesome
sacrifice. This is a description of what
he endured for us. Verse 10, the Lord was pleased
to crush him, putting him to grief. We don’t tend to think
of the Father doing this to Christ. But that’s essentially what took
place. The Father’s justice system was
so perfect that he could not ignore our sin. Had he done so,
we’d have gone to hell. But the Lord was pleased to crush
him. The Lord knew the only way for
our redemption was to go through with the plan to put Christ to grief. If he would render himself as
a guilt offering, he will see his offspring, he will prolong
his days, and the good pleasure of the Lord will prosper in his
hand. As a result of the anguish of
his soul, he will see it and be satisfied. You think of that time where
Christ is on the cross, And he cries out, why have you forsaken? That was the most anguishing
thing that Christ ever endured, was that God had to treat Christ
like sin. The middle of verse 11, by his
knowledge, the righteous one, my servant, the suffering servant,
will justify many. And as he will bear their iniquities,
therefore I will allot him a portion with the great. He will divide
the booty with the strong because he poured out himself to death
and was numbered with the transgressors. Yet he himself bore the sin of
many and interceded for the transgressors. This is our Savior. This is our
Savior’s awesome sacrifice on our behalf. And when we come
to the Lord’s table, we have to remember it. As I come to
the Lord’s table, first of all, I remember what my Savior’s suffering
for my sin fulfilled. It fulfilled the prophecy of
a suffering Savior. But there’s more. As I come to
the Lord’s table, I remember what my Savior’s suffering for
sin included. And there’s a description here
in Isaiah of what Christ endured for my sin. But there’s nothing like the
gospel account. If you would turn to the book of Matthew,
there’s nothing like the gospel accounts in communicating the
graphic nature. And I tried to think of as many
different identifiers as I could in pinpointing what Christ endured
for me. And at first I thought that I
might run out of words. There were so many different
scenarios that bubbled to the surface. It’s inexhaustible what
Christ endured for you and I. It’s inexhaustible. There are
not enough words to describe what Jesus Christ faced for you
and I. If you’re in Matthew, turn to
Matthew chapter 27. Matthew chapter 27, and we’ll
pick up in verse 24. We’re looking at what our Savior’s
suffering for our sin included. What went into it? Verse 24,
when Pilate saw that he was accomplishing nothing, but rather that a riot
was starting, he took water and washed his hands in the front
of the crowd, saying, I am innocent of this man’s blood. See to that. That is, see to this execution
yourselves. Now, Jesus Christ had already
been wrongly arrested and put through a kangaroo court And
so he’s already been wronged, but here, this is one of the
greatest wrongs that a judge can do and render injustice instead
of justice. He goes through the motion of
washing his hands, which did nothing for him. Pilate was still
just as guilty of this, if not more so. He had the means to
stop this and didn’t. He was guilty and Christ was
wronged. Verse 25, and all the people
said, his blood shall be on us and our children. And then he
released Barabbas and in that Christ was defrauded. This was
wrong on every level. Barabbas was a true criminal,
Christ was not. The only just thing was to release
Christ and punish Barabbas, but that’s not what happened. All
the people said, his blood shall be on us and on our children.
Then he released Barabbas for them, but after having Jesus
scourged, he handed him over to be crucified. I’m not even
gonna begin to describe the graphic nature of scourging. But it was
a whip that was designed to inflict maximum punishment. It was torture,
and Christ was tortured. Christ, in his suffering, it
included the fact that he was tortured for my sin. Then the soldiers, verse 27,
of the governor took Jesus into the praetorium and gathered the
whole Roman cohort around him. Then they stripped him. Now we
don’t know to what degree that’s true, whether there was still
yet a loincloth around him, but even still, he was utterly humiliated. Christ was humiliated for my
sin. They put a scarlet robe on him,
and after twisting a crown of thorns, they put it on his head,
And a reed in his right hand, they knelt down before him and
mocked him. He was mocked. Christ was mocked
for my sin. The crown of thorns was not an
article of convenience. It didn’t represent
anything good. It was an article mocking his claimed to be king. But it was made of thorns, and
they jammed it onto his head. He was abused. Christ was abused
for my sin. They knelt down before him and
mocked him, saying, hail, king of the Jews. They spat on him. I’ve seen this
happen a couple of times in the NFL and they treat it like the
worst possible thing that anybody could ever do. I mean, it’s bad. They violated him. They violated
Christ by spitting in his face. Christ’s suffering for my sin
included the fact that they violated him by spitting in his face.
Then they took the reed And they began to beat him on the head.
This was a stick for all intents and purposes. We tend to think
of a reed as a soft, you know, malleable. It was a stick. And they beat
him over the head with it. They assaulted him. Jesus Christ
was assaulted for my sin. After they had mocked him, they
took the scarlet robe off of him, put his garments back on
him, led him away to crucify him. They condemned him. Jesus
Christ was condemned for my sin. You still think I might run out
of descriptives? Not even close. As they were
coming out, they found a man of Cyrene named Simon, whom they
pressed into service to bear his cross. And when they came
to the place called Golgotha, which means place of a skull,
they gave him wine to drink mixed with gall. And after tasting
it, he was unwilling to drink. And when they crucified him,
do we even need to come up with a descriptive word? There’s almost
nothing more graphic than that word crucified. Jesus Christ
was crucified for my sin. And then verse 35, they divided
up his garments among themselves by casting lots. He was shamed. The few little earthly possessions
that he owned were divided up, most of them torn, and divided up amongst them like
so many rags. And sitting down, they began
to keep watch over him there. And above his head, they put
up the charge against him, which read, this is Jesus, the King
of the Jews. He was belittled. They belittled
him there on the cross. They’ve already crucified him.
They’re going to take his life by this means, but it’s not enough. Now they need to belittle him.
Jesus Christ was belittled for my sin. Verse 38, at that time,
two robbers were crucified with him, one on the right, one on
the left. They demeaned him. They put him in the category
with common criminals. That’s why when they put him
in the middle, they wanted him to be seen just like these others.
One on the right, one on the left. My savior was demeaned
for my sin. Those passing by were hurling
abuse at him, wagging their heads and saying, you who are going
to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself.
If you’re the son of God, come down from the cross. They ridiculed
him. Jesus was ridiculed for my sin. In the same way, the chief priests
also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking Him,
saying, He saved others. He cannot save Himself. He’s
the King of Israel. Let Him now come down from the
cross, and we will believe in Him. He trusts in God. Let God rescue Him now, if He
delights in Him. For He said, I am the Son of
God. They taunted Him. Jesus Christ
was not only ridiculed, he was taunted for my sin. Verse 44, the robbers who had
been crucified with him were also insulting him on the same
words. Now you know that one of them
ends up by God’s grace being saved. But in the meantime, they
scorned him. Fellow prisoners, fellow sufferers, scorned. our Savior. From the sixth hour,
darkness fell on all the land until the ninth hour. About the
ninth hour, Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli,
lama sabachthani. That is, my God, my God, why
have you forsaken me? And some of those who were standing
there when they heard it began saying, this man is calling for
Elijah. Immediately, one of them ran,
taking a sponge. He filled it with sour wine and
put it on a reed and gave him a drink. But the rest of them
said, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him. They doubted
him. My Savior was doubted for my sin. Jesus cried out with a loud voice
and yielded up his spirit. As I come to the Lord’s table,
I remember what my Savior’s suffering for sin included. It included
an outpouring of hatred and violence. So as I come to the Lord’s table,
I remember what my Savior’s suffering for sin fulfilled, what it included,
and what it exemplified. For that, would you turn to 1
Peter 2. 1 Peter 2. And verse 18. Servants, be submissive
to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good
and gentle, but also to those who are unreasonable. For this
finds favor if for the sake of conscience toward God a man bears
up under sorrows when suffering unjustly. And you’re saying this
is supposed to be about Christ, supposed to be about preparation
for communion. And now all you’re telling me
to do is put up with my clunky, obnoxious boss. Well, there’s
a point to be made here. Would you look the middle of
verse 20? But if when you do what is right and suffer for
you patiently endure it, this finds favor with God. For you
have been called for this purpose. Since Christ also suffered for
you. Leaving you an example to follow
in his steps. Who committed no sin. Nor was
any deceit found in his mouth. And while being reviled, he did
not revile in return. While suffering, he uttered no
threats, but kept entrusting himself to him who judges righteously. And he himself bore our sins
in his body on the cross, that we might die to sin and live
to righteousness. For by his wounds you were healed.
For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have
returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls. You know
what Peter says there? If Jesus Christ endured all of
that suffering, he was exemplary in it, he provided you the pattern
you can tolerate, when you suffer unjustly. You can suffer a difficult
boss. You can endure some of life’s
inconveniences because Jesus Christ paid the ultimate price. Jesus Christ exemplified suffering. As I come to the Lord’s table,
I remember what my Savior’s suffering from my sin exemplified. It exemplified
suffering. There’s a fourth. As I come to the Lord’s table,
I remember what my Savior’s suffering from my sin accomplished. For
this, would you turn over to Romans and chapter 23, chapter
three, pardon me. Romans chapter three, and when
you get there, scroll down to verse 21. Jesus Christ suffering on the
cross for my sin actually accomplished something. Look at verse 21,
but now apart from the law, no one has ever been saved by the
law. We saw that last week. The righteousness of God has
been manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets,
even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ,
for all those who believe, for there is no distinction, for
all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified
as a gift of his grace, through the redemption which is in Christ
Jesus, whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation of his blood
through faith. This was to demonstrate his righteousness
because in the forbearance of God, he passed over the sins
of those previously committed for the demonstration, I say,
of his righteousness at the present time that he might be just and
the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus
Christ, suffering on the cross for my sin, procured forgiveness. And we see that demonstrably
in chapter five. Would you just flip over one
page? Because of what Christ accomplished
on the cross, we have first of all a life of peace with God,
In chapter five, verse one, therefore, having been justified by faith,
we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through
whom we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which
we stand. It’s only because of Christ.
It accomplished something. It accomplished our redemption.
And not only do we have a life of peace, we have a life of confident
worship. We can come boldly here today,
not as uninvited guests, but as expected friends. Look at
the end of verse two. We exult in hope of the glory
of God. We’ve come in here not with our
fingers crossed, not that kind of hope. It’s a confident expectation
that one day we will join Christ in heaven forever. And it’s a life of divine assistance.
God is going to help. God is going to walk us through.
God is going to give us the grace that we need. Look at verse three.
Not only this, but we exult in our tribulations. A tribulation,
a trial, a difficulty is just one more opportunity for God
to show his incredible grace. We exult in our tribulations,
knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance, and perseverance,
proven character, and proven character, hope. And hope does
not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within
our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who was given to us. For while
we were still helpless, at the right time, Christ died for the
ungodly. That’s you and I. Christ died
for the ungodly, for one will hardly die for a righteous man,
though perhaps for the good man, someone would dare even to die.
But God demonstrates his own love toward us in that while
we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Not only do we have peace, not
only do we exalt before Him, not only do we eagerly embrace
trials, but look at verse nine. It’s a life free from the wrath
of God. That’s exactly what we sang about.
No condemnation. I will never have to answer for
my sin. Verse nine, much more than having
now been justified by his blood, we shall be saved from the wrath
of God through him. For if while we were yet enemies,
we were reconciled to God through the death of his son, much more
having been reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not
only this, but we exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom we have now received the reconciliation. Christ did
it all. Christ did it all. And so as I come to the Lord’s
table, I remember what my Savior’s suffering from my sin accomplished. In that very sense, it is finished.
He accomplished our redemption. As I come to the Lord’s table,
I remember what my Savior’s suffering from my sin fulfilled, what it
included, what it exemplified, what it accomplished, And what
it exalted. A lot of times we tend to think
of ourselves as being exalted. For this, would you turn to Philippians
chapter two. Philippians chapter two. Scroll
down to verse five. Have this attitude. which was
also in Christ Jesus, who, although he existed in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but
emptied himself, taking the form of a bondservant, and being made
in the likeness of men, and being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death,
even death on a cross. Therefore, God highly exalted
him. and bestowed on him the name
which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee
should bow, of those who are in heaven and those on earth
and under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. God highly
exalted, there is no higher place than to sit at the right hand
of God. Jesus Christ has been super exalted,
So as I come to the Lord’s table, I remember what my Savior’s suffering
for my sin exalted. It exalted the Lord Jesus Christ. Number six. As I come to the
Lord’s table, I remember what my Savior’s suffering for sin
demands. I found 1 Peter once, if you would
find it again. 1 Peter, this time chapter four. I remember what my Savior’s suffering
for my sin demands. It demands holy living. Verse
one of chapter four, therefore, since Christ has suffered in
the flesh, arm yourselves with the same purpose, because he
who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin so as to
live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for the lusts
of men, but for the will of God. But the time is already past
sufficient for you to have carried out the desire of the Gentiles,
having pursued a course of sensuality, lusts, drunkenness, carousals,
drinking parties, and abominable idolatries. And in all this,
they are surprised that you do not run with them into the same
excess of dissipation. And they malign you, but they
shall give an account to him who is ready to judge the living
and the dead. Jesus Christ’s suffering for
my sin demands holy living. It demands that I forsake sin. As the Puritans used to speak
of it, I mortify sin. When God brings it to my mind
by means of the Holy Spirit, by means of his word, I confess
that sin. I forsake that sin. I embrace
the grace to rise above that sin. As I come to the Lord’s
table, I remember what my Savior’s suffering for my sin demands.
And finally, as I come to the Lord’s table,
I remember what my Savior’s suffering for my sin fulfilled, included,
exemplified, accomplished, exalted, What it demands, what it promises. For this would you turn to Romans
chapter eight. Romans chapter eight. And if you would find your way
down to verse 16. The Spirit himself bears witness
with our spirit that we are children of God. And if children, heirs
also, heirs of God, and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed
we suffer with him, in order that we may be glorified with
him. For I consider that the sufferings
of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the
glory that is to be revealed to us. For the anxious longing
of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons
of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not of
its own will, but because of him who subjected it, in hope
that the creation itself will be set free from its slavery
to corruption, into the freedom of the glory of the children
of God. If you don’t know Christ, this verse is for you. But this
verse is also for believers. This verse, if you’re a believer,
tells you that one day you are going to experience God’s glory. If you’re not a believer, all
the difficulties of this life are intended to point you to
that truth, to get you to look up. As I come to the Lord’s table,
I remember what my Savior’s suffering for sin promises. It promises
that one day, This will all fade away, and I will be with Christ
in heaven in a glorified state, worshiping our Savior throughout
eternity. As I come to the Lord’s table,
I remember what my Savior’s suffering for my sin fulfilled, what it
included, what it exemplified, what it accomplished. What it
exalted, what it demands, what it promises. Would you humble
yourself before him?