(Prepared to go along with a sermon on Revelation chapter 14.)

We live in an industrialized and a technological society. Personally, I’m very grateful that we do. Life is, in many ways, much easier than it used to be. Our technology makes us far more efficient than before. We are able to do a whole lot of things that we couldn’t before. As only one example, I write books. Because of the technological advances over the last few decades, I am able to typeset and publish them on my own without having to go through a traditional publisher. Without that ability, I probably wouldn’t be able to publish them at all because I doubt that any publisher would consider taking them on.

There’s an aspect of our technology that we hardly give any thought to because we’re so used to it. Can you imagine the nightmares we’d have without interchangeable parts? Let’s say a light bulb burns out. In order to change it, you have to sort through a couple dozen of them before you find one that fits the socket. Or suppose that a part breaks on your car. Instead of just going down to the parts store and buying a replacement, you have to have a machinist make you one from scratch so that it fits. It’s bad enough that different phones use different styles of USB cables, but at least the styles are standardized. Just think what it would be like if the cable you have only fits your phone. Nobody else’s cable will work. What would you do if you forgot to take your custom-fit cable with you on a trip?

All of this interchangeability assumes that there are standards. You want to cook a meal. The recipe calls for a cup of milk. If there wasn’t a standard for how much a cup is, the meal would turn out totally different for each person to tried to cook it. You measure your floor and find that you need 8 feet of vinyl to cover it. You come back from the store only to find out that their measure of 8 feet is only 7 foot, 6 by your measure. We can be very grateful that this country has a bureau of standards to ensure that an inch is an inch is an inch. My uncle worked for IBM. I remember him telling me that the company once sent him to the the bureau of standards to collect a rod which was exactly one inch in length. It was packaged in a special, environmentally sealed container. He had to hand carry it and buy an extra airplane seat for it – so that nothing could possibly change or damage it in transit. By having that standard, the company could ensure that all of its measurements were accurate.

Just as standards are essential to make physical life practical, we need them in spiritual things as well. Without standards, we wouldn’t know how we measure up to God’s expectations. We wouldn’t know how to evaluate our lives. In writing to the Christians at Corinth, the Apostle Paul urged them to test or evaluate where they were. In chapter 13, verses 5 and 6 he writes, “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you – unless, of course, you fail the test? And I trust that you will discover that we have not failed the test.” (NIV)

What is the standard by which we are to compare ourselves to see whether or not we pass the test? In the verses we just read, Paul implies that the standard is Jesus Christ. May I suggest that one of the many reasons Jesus asked us to commemorate Him on a regular basis is so that we can evaluate where we are in comparison to the standard of Himself and how He acts.

We often use Paul’s account in 1st Corinthians 11 during Communion. In verses 28 through 31 he writes, “A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep. But if we judged ourselves, we would not come under judgment.” (NIV)

Paul says that we must “recognize the body” when we participate in Communion. What does that mean? Earlier, in verse 21, Paul took the Corinthians to task for not waiting for each other when they gathered for the Communion meal. In verse 33, he again instructs them to wait for each other. In chapter 12, he goes on to describe the church as a body and how each part of the body is essential to the functioning of the whole. So, in the context, it looks to me like Paul is saying that “recognizing the body” when we come to Communion means caring for one another. It means putting the welfare and interests of the other parts of the body ahead of our own.

And what better time to examine ourselves. Jesus is our standard. The Communion reminds us of how He put our interests ahead of His own. He sacrificed His life so we could live. He gave His blood for our freedom. As we partake of the bread and juice, let’s test and evaluate ourselves. Am I putting others first? Do I sacrifice for them as Jesus sacrificed Himself for me? How healthy am I spiritually speaking? Am I in danger of becoming weak or sick or even dying because I don’t treat the other parts of the body as I should? How do I measure up to Jesus’ example?

Let’s pray.