Friday May 29^th-Walking in Wisdom

Mark 14

This chapter has a lot that I could talk on but I am going to focus on the Lord’s Supper.  Participating in the Lord’s Supper is a very serious thing.  I did not know how serious till the Lord showed me.  And how was I going to teach my children to participate?

Mark :22-25 And while they were eating, He took a loaf [of bread], praised God and gave thanks and asked Him to bless it to their use. [Then] He broke [it] and gave to them and said, Take. Eat. This is My body.
He also took a cup [of the juice of grapes], and when He had given thanks, He gave [it] to them, and they all drank of it.
And He said to them, This is My blood [which ratifies] the new covenant, [the blood] which is being poured out for (on account of) many.
Solemnly and surely I tell you, I shall not again drink of the fruit of the vine till that day when I drink it of a new and a higher quality in God’s kingdom.

Matt. 26:26-29- While they were eating, Jesus took some bread, and  after a blessing, He broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins. But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.” [Amp.]

I Cor. 11:23-33 - For I received from the Lord that which I also 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.
Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly. For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number  sleep. But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world.
So then, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. If anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, so that you will not come together for judgment. The remaining matters I will arrange when I come.

These verses in I Corinthians are what stood out to me, it was when I realized that taking the Lord’s Supper was a very serious thing.  We are to examine ourselves, while I knew this I did not see the seriousness of it until I saw the next few verses.  For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly.  

Wow!  We are to judge ourselves rightly…whatever does that mean?

 

II Corinthians 13:5- Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you  fail the test?

Psalm 94:12 - Blessed is the man whom You chasten, O Lord,
And whom You teach out of Your law;

Have you truly surrendered yourselves to the Lord Jesus Christ?  Are you in the faith?  Do you remember the day you accepted Christ in your life?  You may not remember the exact time or place but you knew that He changed you and was now living in you.

Examine-To inspect carefully, with a view to discover truth or the real state of a thing  [1828 webster’s dictionary]

Psalm 139:23-24- Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me and know my anxious thoughts;
And see if there be any  hurtful way in me,
And lead me in the everlasting way

Psalm 26:2 - Examine me, O Lord, and try me;
Test my mind and my heart.

Ps 7:9; Prov 17:3; Jer 11:20; 1 Thess 2:4 – in these verses you will see that it is God who examines and searches our hearts.

 

The only way we can truly examine our hearts is by God’s Word.  We go to Him and ask Him to reveal to us anything that sets itself up against Him.  That He will show us where we are not surrendered to Him.  We all sin and quite often sometimes, but He is faithful!

I John 1:9 - If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Before receiving the Lord’s Supper, make sure you are His child, confess your sins and believe that He has forgiven you, then you are free to participate in the Lord’s Supper with a clean slate.  If you find that you are not right with the Lord, then I encourage you to not participate until you have made it right with him or if you need to make it right with someone else.

When my children were young and had accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior and had been baptized, was when I would walk them through the process of taking it correctly.  I would do it with them each Sunday that we participated till they truly understood. 

  II Corinthians 13:14 - The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.

Lyn