(Prepared for a sermon based on Philippians 2:1-4.)

In 2007 my father and I took a trip to India. One of the things we did was visit a church in the city of Amritsar. The people there loved the Lord. They were enthusiastic and sincere in their faith. Unfortunately, they weren’t very mature spiritually and their leadership was rather weak.

About 20 miles away is another congregation. The people in it also loved the Lord. They were more spiritually mature and they had better leadership. What would be more natural than to encourage the two congregations to have fellowship with each other? Both would benefit from interacting and learning from each other.

It was not to be. You see, between the two congregations there is an international border. High barbed-wire fences separate the two sides. There are machine-gun nests covering no-mans’-land and, most probably, fields of land-mines as well.

It’s even impossible for people on either side of the border to phone each other. The phone systems literally do not connect. Even a cell phone on one side can’t talk to a cell phone on the other.

In theory it is possible for a person on one side of the border to travel to the other side, but obtaining a visa to visit the other country is difficult, time-consuming and expensive. And regardless of which side of the border you’re on, drawing the attention of the authorities to your church is the last thing you want to do.

Only 20 miles! Yet, it might as well be 20 million miles. The people speak the same language, they have the same ethnic and cultural background. They look the same, they dress the same and they think alike. Some of them may even be related. Yet, they are kept apart by a barrier of hostility.

It reminds me of another barrier the Apostle Paul writes about in Ephesians, chapter 2. While addressing Gentile Christians he reminds them, “…at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.” (Ephesians 2:12-16 NIV)

In this passage, Paul talks about two kinds of division. One is between people. They are kept separate by mutual hostility. The other kind of division is between people and God. Both kinds of division have the same cause, and both have the same solution.

Unfortunately, we are incapable of resolving either of these divisions on our own. Because we are unable to break down the barriers, Christ did it for us. It is only through His death that the hostility between people can be removed and we can be reconciled to God. It is only in Christ that we can be at peace with each other and with God.

Though the two churches I mentioned are separated from each other by a physical barrier that neither one can cross, I was struck by the desire on both sides to have fellowship with the other group. What is it that made peace between them even though their respective countries hate each other with a passion? What brought them together in spirit even though they don’t know each other and they can’t meet in person? As Paul said, it is the cross of Christ. Through His death both have been brought into the same body. They might be on different sides of a hostile border, but both groups are one when they partake of the Lord’s Supper – the emblems which remind us of Christ’s cross. It is the cross which brings them into unity.

If we are Christians, we’re part of that same body. And when we eat the bread and drink the cup, they remind us that the cross tears down the spiritual barriers which separate us from other people and separate us and God. Though physical barriers may keep us apart from each other, in reality, we are one.

(Written to go along with a sermon on Philippians 1:1-8. The thought comes from verse 6.)

Do you sometimes find it difficult to finish or complete a project? I often find it hard to do so. For example, there’s a small sailboat propped up on sawhorses in my back yard that I’ve never quite gotten around to finishing.

You know how it goes: You get excited about an idea. You imagine how great it would be if only you did thus and so. You do some research and gather the necessary materials. You plunge into the project and, at first, it’s a lot of fun. You enjoy stretching your mind to figure out the best way to get it done. You enjoy learning the skills you need. But then, somewhere about half to three-quarters of the way through, the shine starts to wear off. You encounter a problem you hadn’t expected. Or you start to realize that there’s a lot more work and expense involved than you originally thought. Or you get bored with the project. Or something else comes along which grabs your attention. All of a sudden the project doesn’t seem nearly as important as it did at first. And, if you’re not careful – if you don’t deliberately make up your mind to see it through, the project just sort of dies. It remains uncompleted.

Scripture says that Jesus was tempted in every way, just as we are (Hebrews 4:15). That being so, there must have been times when He was tempted to give up and quit. He came to earth for the express purpose of saving us from our sins. Or, to put it another way, He came to reconcile us to God.

But though His purpose was noble, and His intentions were the best, actually completing the project wasn’t easy. It involved a lot of sacrifice and heartache. It’s true that for the first year or so of His ministry, Jesus was immensely popular. Yet even popularity has its drawbacks. Mark records that sometimes Jesus and His disciples didn’t even have the time to eat (Mark 3:20, 6:31).

In addition to physical discomforts Jesus must have been discouraged sometimes by His disciples’ inability to understand what He said to them. At other times, He was astonished by people’s lack of faith – even when they saw the miracles He performed.

Even worse was the hostility of the religious leaders – the very people who should have been His biggest supporters. Having to deal with their hypocrisy, trick questions designed to trap Him and the lies they told about Him, there must have been times when Jesus wondered whether it was worth it.

Sometimes the temptation to quit and do something else was more direct. John 12:20-36 records that some Greeks approached Jesus with a proposal. John doesn’t tell us what it was, but whatever it was, accepting it would have given Jesus a way to escape going to the cross. My personal opinion is that this was probably the biggest temptation Jesus ever had to face. Certainly it was the biggest after Satan tempted Him in the wilderness shortly after His baptism.

In spite of all the difficulties, hardships, opposition and the temptation to quit, Jesus stayed true to the mission. He didn’t give up. He went through with it, even though it meant facing an agonizing death on the cross. He let nothing faze Him. Luke writes, “As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.” (Luke 9:51 NIV)

One of the greatest statements Jesus ever made was while He was on the cross. John 19:28-30 says, “Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.” (NIV)

I’m glad that Jesus resolutely completed the task God gave Him to do. Because He finished what he set out to do, we can be reconciled to God.

Each week we come together to remember what Jesus did. As we eat the bread which reminds us of His body and drink the juice which reminds us of His blood, let’s re-commit to finishing the task God has given us. Hebrews 12:2-3 says, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” (NIV)

Let’s finish resolutely, just as He did!

(I wrote this meditation to go with a sermon titled “Christians Are The Body Of Christ”)

The church at Corinth had a problem. It was badly infected with the “Me First” virus. In 1st Corinthians chapters 1 through 3, Paul pointed out that the Christians were squabbling over whose conversion was the most valid or authentic. They were also fighting about who was the wisest.

In chapter 4 they were bragging about how superior they were to Paul.

In chapter 5 they were boasting about how progressive and tolerant they were about alternate lifestyles.

In chapter 6 they were fussing about rights. They were taking each other to court to get what they wanted.

Also in chapter six we see that some were putting a priority on pleasure and satisfying their own sexual desires.

Chapter 7 tells us they were having problems in regard to marriage. Again, their emphasis seemed to be on putting themselves, and what they wanted, first.

Chapter 8 deals with food. People at Corinth were going down to the pagan temples for dinner without thinking about what kind of example they were setting for their fellow believers.

In chapter 9 Paul explains how he set his own rights aside in order to better serve the people in the church.

In chapter 10 Paul returns to the subject of eating meat sacrificed to idols. However, this time he approaches it from a different angle. Apparently there were quite a few people in the church who liked to eat out. “Hey, the temple of Apollo serves a pretty mean steak! So, what if you have to give a little bow to the statue before the maitre d’ seats you?”

But Paul points out that this is not as harmless and innocent as people were trying to make it seem. In reality we are not merely individuals, free to do whatever we like. Though we are individuals, we are also a part of a greater whole. Paul makes his argument by referring to Communion. In doing so he introduces a new term, “the body of Christ.” In verses 15 through 17 he says, “I speak to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say. Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf.” (1 Corinthians 10:15-17 NIV)

Now Paul had already used the term “body” in this letter. However, he used it to refer to an individual’s own physical body. Here, though, he uses the word to refer to the church as a whole. All of us who participate in the loaf and cup of Communion form one body. Even when we act as individuals we also, in a sense, represent the entire body – that is, the church. What we do is not just our own business – it affects the entire body.

Paul goes on to warn that the meat down at the temple has been sacrificed to demons. As part of the body of Christ, it’s totally inappropriate for us to also fellowship or participate with demons. The two communions are mutually exclusive.

Then, in verse 24 Paul lays down a principle which we should take into account in everything we do, “Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.” (1 Corinthians 10:24 NIV) He expands the principle in verses 31 through 33, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God – even as I try to please everybody in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.” (1 Corinthians 10:31-33 NIV)

In the first part of chapter 11, Paul talks about authority. Unfortunately, when people read it they get so wrapped up arguing about head coverings that they miss the whole point – that is that we need to defer to one another within the authority structure which God has established. I shouldn’t insist on doing only what I want. Instead I need to realize that Christ is the head. It is He who should control the entire body.

Then, in the last part of chapter 11, Paul applies these concepts and principles to the church’s practice of taking the Lord’s Supper or Communion. To understand what he says, please realize that, in those days, the church took the Communion during an actual meal. Let’s read starting in verse 17.

“In the following directives I have no praise for you, for your meetings do more harm than good. In the first place, I hear that when you come together as a church, there are divisions among you, and to some extent I believe it. No doubt there have to be differences among you to show which of you have God’s approval. When you come together, it is not the Lord’s Supper you eat, for as you eat, each of you goes ahead without waiting for anybody else. One remains hungry, another gets drunk. Don’t you have homes to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you for this? Certainly not!” (1 Corinthians 11:17-22 NIV)

I said that the church at Corinth had a problem with “Me First!” Here we see a horrible example of it. When they came to the table it was “Me First, Me First!” As a result some took way too much and some didn’t get any food at all. Can you imagine someone actually getting drunk on the Communion wine during the church service? Well, they were doing it at Corinth and, in the process, were forgetting the whole purpose of their getting together. The meal was intended as a means to an end, not the end itself.

If the purpose isn’t to have a good feed, then what is the purpose of the Lord’s Supper? Paul already told us what one of the purposes is – it is to commune or share with one another and with Christ.

In verses 23 through 26 Paul tells us two more purposes for the Supper. It is to remember and to proclaim. By means of the meal we remember the covenant Christ has made with us, and we proclaim His death and second coming.

In verses 27 and following, Paul applies what he’s been saying to each one of us personally, “Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. 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. When we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned with the world. So then, my brothers, when you come together to eat, wait for each other.” (1 Corinthians 11:27-33 NIV)

I want to emphasize that phrase, “recognizing (or as your translation may say, discerning) the body of the Lord. Paul has already defined the “body of the Lord” as the church. In the context, to partake of the bread and cup in an unworthy manner is to think of ourselves first, without considering our fellow believers. Just how aware are we of each other – each other’s joys, sorrows, heartaches and blessings?

Today as we eat the bread and drink the cup let’s not be like the “Me First!” Corinthians and so bring judgment on ourselves. Instead, let’s learn to wait for one another, to put one another first, to seek what is good for the other members of Christ’s body.

(I gave this talk on a day the preacher spoke about Christians being brothers.)

In our culture there is a lot of emphasis on race and ethnic origins. Even when you fill out some form which is totally unrelated, they ask you what race you belong to. All too often people use the politics of race to divide and seek power for themselves. Instead of emphasizing what we all have in common, they use race to stir up division and dissension.

Others use the politics of envy to stir up ill-feeling. As a result, to paraphrase what the Apostle Paul wrote in Titus 3:3, people live in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another.

All this is nothing new. No matter what time period you look at people have found reasons not to get along with others who are different than themselves. Fighting and war have been one of the constants of human history.

As bad as the divisions between people are, they are only a reflection of the far greater estrangement there is between mankind and God. Instead of doing what He asked, we insisted on doing things our own way. We thought we knew better than He. The end result is that we separated ourselves from our Holy God.

God could have left things that way. He could have said, “You made your bed, now you get to lie in it.” But He didn’t do that. He loves us and wants the estrangement to end.

Since we are incapable of making things right, God did for us what we can’t do for ourselves. One of the purposes of Jesus’ coming into our world was to pay our debt – the debt we owe God and can never repay.

But there was another reason for Jesus’ coming. It was not only to heal the estrangement between us and God, it was also to heal the estrangement between peoples and races. In Ephesians 2:13-19 the Apostle Paul wrote, “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit. Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household,” (NIV)

Throughout history there have been all kinds of peace conferences to try to resolve disputes. But it seems that no sooner than one conflict is resolved, another breaks out. As Scripture says, we don’t know the way of peace (see Romans 3:17).

The reason the peace conferences fail is that they are depending on the wrong things to bring peace about. Paul points out in the passage we read that it is only through Jesus’ blood that we can be reconciled to each other. While making it possible for us to become reconciled to God, Jesus also broke down the barriers which separate us from each other.

In Christ we all belong to God’s household. We are brothers instead of aliens and foreigners to each other. We are family.

Sometimes we forget who and what we are and need to be reminded of it. That’s one of the reasons we gather each week – to remember who we are, that we’re in the same family and that family sticks together. Family works problems out instead of letting problems divide and separate. We gather to remember that in Christ we are all one.

Each week we eat the bread to remind us that Christ’s body was broken to make us whole. We drink the juice to remind us that Jesus’ blood destroyed the things which separate us both from God and from one another.

(Prepared for a sermon on 1 Timothy 6:17-21)

At one time or another, just about everyone asks himself what life is all about. We’d like to think that we are here for some purpose. We want to know the meaning of life. There’s an emptiness within us which longs to be filled.

In the attempt to find purpose and meaning, people pursue all kinds of things. It turns out that there are only a limited number of things a person can try in the search for significance. Unfortunately, people throughout history have made the same experiments over and over again and keep coming up with the same result: Possessions, power and pleasure don’t satisfy our deepest needs and longings.

King Solomon tried it all. He pursued pleasure. He tried to find meaning in alcohol. He tried his hand at architecture, gardening, horticulture and animal husbandry. He studied nature. He amassed horses and chariots. He owned a trading fleet and was an international arms broker. He acquired slaves and musicians. He tried to find satisfaction in sex. He wrote songs and collected proverbs. He even had a career as a teacher. He accumulated more gold and silver than anybody could spend in a lifetime.

Looking back on it all Solomon concluded that there is some satisfaction in hard work and creating things. However, in the final analysis it is all meaningless. Nothing of eternal value is gained. All of our pursuits in trying to find the meaning of life are like chasing after the wind.

Why is it that way? It is because we cannot fill spiritual needs with material things. We are spiritual beings yet we focus on created things rather than the One who created them. As Solomon discovered, there’s no way that the grand house, the flashy wheels, the big bank account and painting the town red can fill the hole in our souls. No matter how much we do or how much we collect, we can’t earn or buy our way into heaven. Jesus put it this way, “What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26 NIV) We can’t take any of that stuff with us and we’ll look pretty silly trying to impress God, who owns the whole universe, with the size of our bank account.

If we can’t find true satisfaction in possessions, power and pleasure, then where can we find fulfillment? Where can we find meaning? Where can we find life that is truly life?

The answer to our deepest longings and aspirations is Jesus Christ. He said, “…I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6 NIV) He also said, “…I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10 NIV)

Yet life does not come without a cost. In the very next verse Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” (John 10:11 NIV) Jesus gave up His life so that we could have life. And apart from Jesus we cannot have life that is truly life.

That’s what we’re here to remember today. Jesus died so that our lives will have fulfillment and meaning. The bread we eat reminds us of His body which He sacrificed for us. The juice reminds us of His blood which covers our sins.

As we eat and drink this morning, let’s ask ourselves the question: “Am I still trying to find fulfillment in things? Am I still trying to find meaning in life by pursuing pleasure or power? Or, have I found the life which is truly life in Jesus Christ?”

(Prepared to go along with a sermon on 1 Timothy 5:17-22)

In his first letter to Timothy, the Apostle Paul devotes a lot of time to discussing church leaders. He talks about their character. He talks about their qualifications. He talks about about their work. As I read through the book one question which comes to my mind has to do with the motivation of church leaders. Why do people seek positions of leadership? What drives someone to become an evangelist or a deacon or an elder?

There’s no doubt that some seek to lead the church for selfish reasons. I’m sure that most of us have encountered or observed some church leaders who are in it for the money. In chapter 6, verse 5, Paul writes about people who think that godliness is a means to financial gain.

Others want a leading position in the church for the prestige or social status. They like the title. On several occasions Jesus had to rebuke the disciples for arguing about who was the greatest or most important.

However, the best and greatest church leaders are not in their positions because of selfish motives. In speaking about the religious leaders of His day, Jesus said to the disciples, “Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them ‘Rabbi.’ But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. Nor are you to be called ‘teacher,’ for you have one Teacher, the Christ. The greatest among you will be your servant.” (Matthew 23:5-11 NIV)

According to Jesus, it’s how much a leader serves others which determines his greatness. Service rather than using his position for personal advantage or to browbeat others into doing what he wants.

What motivates a leader to put the interests of others first? What motivates him to consider others better than himself? (See Philippians 2:3-4.) Certainly, one of the motivations is love – a genuine desire to do what is best for the other person. When we love someone, we will endure all kinds of hardship, inconvenience and expense for their sake. Good church leaders certainly do put up with a lot in order to help those in their care.

However, I think there’s something else which motivates good church leaders. It is joy. There really is joy in watching others make spiritual progress. The Apostle John writes, “It gave me great joy to have some brothers come and tell about your faithfulness to the truth and how you continue to walk in the truth. I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” (3 John 3-4 NIV)

Along the same lines, Hebrews 13:17 says, “Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you.” (NIV)

This brings us to Jesus and His motivation for enduring all that He went through. The writer of Hebrews puts it this way in chapter 12, verse 2, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (NIV)

One of the reasons we’re gathered here this morning is to remember Jesus and His death on the cross. As we eat the break which represents His body, and as we drink the juice which represents His blood, I want us to ask ourselves a question: “Do I bring Him joy?”

If we’re a cause of sorrow, rather than joy, then as we take the emblems let’s commit to making the changes we need to make in order to be a source of joy to Christ.

One of our human conceits is to think that we’re better than everybody else. At least we tend to think that we’re more important than others – we ought to be first in line or receive quicker service or that we’re the exception to the rule.

Unfortunately, Christians are not immune to the “me-first” attitude. All too often, we put our own interests and desires ahead of what is best for the church and God’s Kingdom as a whole. I suppose we get it honestly. Even Jesus’ closest disciples had the problem. Jesus had to deal with it just a few hours before His crucifixion. Let’s read about it in John 13, verse 1 through 17.

[Read John 13:1-17]

It was not a carefree group which gathered around the table for the last meal Jesus was to eat before His arrest. Jesus, of course, knew that His betrayal and death was just a few hours away. All week the tension between Jesus and the religious authorities had been escalating. The disciples must have realized that things were coming to a head. They must have felt stress anticipating what might happen. Judas must have been wondering how he could fulfill his promise to betray Jesus to the authorities without tipping his hand to the other disciples.

In addition to the stress and worry due to the external pressures, there was tension within the group. The disciples were out of sorts with each other. Luke records that they had another squabble about who was the greatest (Luke 22:24-27). Luke doesn’t tell us when the dispute took place that night, but it is logical to assume that it happened as they were gathering around the table. Who would get the places of honor next to Jesus? When they went to Judas and John, I can imagine Peter harrumphing, “Well be that way! If I can’t have the place I deserve, I’ll take the lowest place!”

It is in this context that Jesus began the Passover ritual. Keep in mind that according to verse 3, Jesus was fully aware that the time had come for Him to return to God. Not only that, He was in full control of events. As always He was operating according to the will, and in the power of God. Everything which Jesus did during this meal was done on purpose to teach needed lessons and to demonstrate His love for the disciples.

While following the Passover ritual, Jesus would have taken the first of four cups, spoken a blessing over it and passed it around to the disciples. After passing the first cup, the Passover ritual called for the host to rise from the table and wash his hands. It was probably at this point that Jesus turned the ritual into a graphic lesson in servant-hood. He took a basin of water and a towel and began to wash the disciples’ feet. In other words, the host of the feast proceeded to perform a task normally assigned to a slave.

Peter was incredulous. “You’re going to wash my feet?” It’s interesting to me that Peter was flabbergasted that Jesus would do such a menial task, yet neither he nor any of the other disciples volunteered to do it.

But Jesus intended much more than merely performing a task that nobody else was willing to do – He was trying to convey a spiritual lesson through the physical act. Peter didn’t understand and exclaimed that Jesus would never wash his feet! Jesus responded that unless He washed him, Peter had no part in Him. There is a timeless truth in this. How do we participate in Christ? Not by anything we do, but by accepting what Christ does for us.

Again, Peter missed the point. “Well, if it’s that way, go ahead and give me a bath!” Jesus explained that those who are clean, need only to wash their feet. What Jesus was trying to convey is that those who have had their hearts cleansed, only need to have the incidental sins of daily life removed. John was later to write, “If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.” (1 John 1:6-7 NIV)

Jesus went on to say that not everyone was clean. He knew very well that Judas was going to betray Him. I think Jesus was trying to get Judas to recognize his true condition and repent.

After Jesus had finished and returned to His place at the table, He applied the lesson He had just acted out. If He, as their Teacher and Lord had served them, they too ought to serve one another. Instead of arguing about who was the greatest, they should have been looking for opportunities to serve each other.

We need to listen to the same lesson Jesus taught the disciples. To refuse to serve is to place ourselves above the person we call our Master.

We’re about to take part in what we call the “Lord’s Supper.” It’s a token reminder of the meal Jesus ate with His disciples that night so long ago. We rightly say that the bread we eat is to remind us of Jesus’ body which He sacrificed for us. We rightly say that the juice is to remind us of Jesus’ blood which cleanses us from sin. We’re right to say this because Jesus, Himself, asked us to remember His sacrifice for us with these emblems.

However, there is another lesson in the Lord’s Supper. It is Jesus’ example of servant-hood. Jesus instructed His disciples to serve one another. And, He gave us an example of loving service when He washed the disciples’ feet. A few hours later He gave an even greater example of love when He died on the cross for both them and us.

What do our actions say about us? When people look at us do they see loving service or do they see an example of “me-first”? Today as we eat and drink let’s think about Jesus’ example and what kind of example we set.

(Presented on Easter Sunday, 2016)

It seems to me that feelings against Christians and Christianity are on the rise all over the world. For example, not long ago I received a news summary from Far East Broadcasting Associates which had this in it: “A major inquiry into the place of religion in modern society says that Britain is no longer a Christian country and should stop acting as if it is. The two-year commission, chaired by the former senior judge Baroness Butler-Sloss and involving leading religious leaders from all faiths, calls for public life in Britain to be systematically de-Christianised…” (FEBA Snippets – January 2016)

The same paper also had this to say about what is going on in Britain, “Christian Mps (that is Members of Parliament) have warned that Sunday schools could be banned from teaching that marriage is between a Man and a Woman. The Mps said government proposals to subject Sunday Schools to Ofsted inpections, ‘could have a seriously detrimental effect on the freedom of religious organisations.’…”

If that’s what’s going on in Britain, it wouldn’t surprise me if there’s some bureaucrat on this side of the pond who are thinks it’s a good idea too. Personally, the very thought of having to inspect and monitor thousands of Sunday School classes is enough to bring on a migraine. So, being as I’m such a helpful and considerate person, I have a modest proposal which would save the government all kinds of time and trouble. It wouldn’t require any two-year commissions chaired by former judges. And, it doesn’t involve hiring a bunch of inspectors to make sure the Sunday Schools are politically correct. Just think! The money that would free up could be spent on more important things – such as repairing the roads.

If the government really wants to destroy Christianity, if it really wants to de-Christianize the country, it’s very simple. All it has to do is to prove that Jesus did not rise from the dead. If the resurrection didn’t happen, the whole thing falls apart.

Lest you think I’m exaggerating when I say that Christianity falls apart without the resurrection, here’s what the Apostle Paul had to say on the subject. “…if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.” (1 Corinthians 15:14-19 NIV)

To paraphrase what Paul said, if Jesus did not rise from the dead, Christianity is a scam. We’re wasting our time. We might as well go home and play tiddlywinks.

So, since all we have to do to get rid of Christianity is to prove that the resurrection didn’t happen, how can we go about it? Here’s an idea: Let’s say that the soldiers who were guarding the tomb went to sleep. While they were dozing, Jesus’ disciples swiped the body and claimed that He rose from the dead. Sounds plausible, doesn’t it? In fact, this is exactly what the authorities did claim at the time (Matthew 28:12-15). But wait a minute! If the soldiers were asleep, how could they know what happened? And, if they admitted to sleeping on duty, then how come they didn’t get punished for it? The penalty for sleeping while on guard was death. So why were these guys still walking around bragging about what happened while they were zonked out? Hmm. Perhaps this explanation isn’t so reasonable after all.

Well, there is another simple explanation as to what really happened. It should be obvious that the women and disciples just went to the wrong tomb. They got mixed up and happened to visit an empty tomb instead of the one where they buried Jesus. But if that’s the case, how come nobody pointed them to the right tomb? When Mary was talking to the person she thought was the gardener, why didn’t he say, “Lady, there’s no reason to get all upset! You’ve just come to the wrong place. Let me show you right one.” And, when the rumors started making the rounds that Jesus had risen from the dead, why didn’t the authorities hold a press conference at the correct tomb? All they had to do was produce the body and the ridiculous notion would have been stopped in it’s tracks.

Perhaps Jesus’ body wasn’t in the tomb because He really didn’t die on the cross, after all. The coolness of the tomb revived Him and He managed to escape. Really? Granted improbable things happen, but this is just a little too thick. Even granting that the Roman soldiers somehow bungled the job when they killed Jesus, His escaping the tomb would have been even more miraculous than the resurrection. When the women went to the tomb to finish their burial customs, they were worried about how they could move the stone away from the entrance. Now, if a bunch of able-bodied women didn’t have the strength to move the stone, then how is someone who is severely injured, weak from dehydration and blood-loss, and weighted down with 75 pounds of spices (John 19:39-40) supposed to somehow unwrap himself from the burial cloths and roll the stone out of the way?

Since that notion doesn’t hold up too well, then what about saying that people imagined they saw Jesus after resurrecting? The appearances must be some sort of wish-fulfillment or mass hysteria! The odd thing is that Jesus’ disciples didn’t expect Him to rise. They were at least as shocked as anybody else when Jesus appeared to them after the crucifixion. And what’s really weird is that even Jesus’ closest associates didn’t recognize Him at first. How can something be a wish fulfillment if you aren’t wishing it at all? And not recognizing the person you desperately want to see flies in the face of all psychology. Hallucinations don’t work that way. And are we going to say that over 500 people who saw Jesus during the same incident had exactly the same hallucination at the same time (1 Corinthians 15:6)? Tell me another!

While all the arguments against the resurrection don’t hold water, there is a powerful argument for the resurrection. After the crucifixion, Jesus’ disciples were a thoroughly disillusioned, discouraged and frightened bunch. They met behind locked doors because of fear of the Jews (John 20:19). Yet, only 50 days later this same bunch of frightened, discouraged people boldly and publicly laid the responsibility for Jesus’ death at the feet of the same authorities they’d been so scared of earlier. It’s almost as if they are totally different people. Something happened during those 50 days to change these men from cringing cowards to fearless preachers. There’s only one thing that makes sense: They encountered the risen Christ. They were so convinced of the truth of the resurrection that all of them were willing to stake their lives on it. They never backed down from their story even to save themselves from gruesome deaths.

People have been trying to disprove the resurrection for 2,000 years. They haven’t been able to do so – and they never will. No government commission or blue-ribbon panel will ever be able to change the facts. Christianity is here to stay whether they like it or not.

Because the resurrection is true, it also gives us hope. In the same passage we read earlier, Paul goes on to say, “But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.” (1 Corinthians 15:20-22 NIV)

Because Christ rose from the dead, we have hope that we also will rise. Death is not the end.

We’re here today to remember and celebrate the resurrection. The bread we eat and the juice we drink commemorate Christ’s death on the cross. But they also look beyond the cross. Today as we partake, let’s also remember the hope we have because Jesus conquered death. By His resurrection He broke the power of death, so we might live.

There have been a few times in my life when someone has come up to me and, out of the blue, said, “I’ve been thinking about you.” I don’t know about you, but that makes me feel good. It’s really nice to know that someone appreciates me.

As nice as that is, it’s even more special when someone says, “I’ve been praying for you.” Especially, when I’m going through some sort of trouble or heartache and the person who’s been praying for me didn’t know about it. For whatever reason, God brought me to mind and he or she prayed for me – without even knowing why.

It’s especially humbling when the other person is going through some trouble or hardship of their own, but they took the time to pray for me. They, themselves, could use prayer and support, but it was me they prayed for.

Just a little while before His arrest and crucifixion, Jesus took the time to pray for others. Jesus already knew what He faced. He knew He was going to have to die and He knew how He was going die. I’m sure He wished that somebody would encourage Him and pray on His behalf. Instead, one of His disciples betrayed Him.

In spite of the betrayal, the emotional stress and the dread of anticipating what He was going to suffer in just a few hours, Jesus was thinking about people besides Himself.

That includes you and me. Right after praying for His disciples, Jesus said, “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.” (John 17:20-23 NIV)

Jesus prayed for us. He prayed that we would be united, that we would be one. Jesus not only prayed for unity, He was willing to do what it took to make unity possible. He allowed His body to be broken so that we can be whole. He gave His blood that our differences might be healed.

Each week we gather to remember what Jesus did. We remember His broken body. We remember His blood. Today as we eat and drink the things which remind us of the crucifixion, let’s also remember Jesus’ prayer – the reason He went to the cross. He wanted us to be one.

Let’s renew our determination to make the unity Jesus prayed for a reality. Let’s put aside our differences and disagreements and pray and worship together with one heart.

Today I want to talk to you about one of those little words that is so easy to pronounce, and so very hard to put into practice. It is the word mercy. It means to treat kindly, or forgive, someone who doesn’t deserve it. We all want mercy when we’re the one at fault, yet we find it very difficult to show mercy to someone who has harmed us.

You may have heard the story of Corrie Ten Boom. She was a Dutch woman who was sent to the Ravensbruck concentration camp during World War II for hiding Jews. Her sister died there. Corrie was released one week before all the other women in her barracks were sent to the gas chambers.

After the war she busied herself in rehabilitation work. She also went to churches telling her story and preaching forgiveness and reconciliation. She writes of a time when she found it almost impossible to show mercy.

“It was at a church service in Munich that I saw him, the former S.S. man who had stood guard at the shower room door in the processing center at Ravensbruck. He was the first of our actual jailers that I had met since that time. And suddenly it was all there – the roomful of mocking men, the heaps of clothing, Betsie’s pain-blanched face.

“He came up to me as the church was emptying, beaming and bowing. “How grateful I am for your message, Fraulein,” he said. “To think that, as you say, He has washed my sins away!”

“His hand was thrust out to shake mine. And I, who had preached so often to the people in Bloemendaal the need to forgive, kept my hand at my side. …I tried to smile, I struggled to raise my hand. I could not. I felt nothing, not the slightest spark of warmth or charity…” (Corrie Ten Boom, The Hiding Place, World Wide Pictures, 1971, p. 233)

There aren’t too many of us who have had to experience the kind of trauma that Corrie Ten Boom did. Yet, whether the hurt done to us is great or small, God still tells us to show mercy to those who have wronged us. We are to forgive rather than take vengeance.

Shakespeare put it this way:

“The quality of mercy is not strained.
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath. It is twice blessed:
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.
‘Tis mightiest in the mightiest. It becomes
The thronèd monarch better than his crown.
His scepter shows the force of temporal power,
The attribute to awe and majesty
Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings,
But mercy is above the sceptered sway.
It is enthronèd in the hearts of kings,
It is an attribute to God himself.
And earthly power doth then show likest God’s
When mercy seasons justice….” (The Merchant of Venice)

As Shakespeare says, when we show mercy we display one of the attributes of God. The Apostle Paul writes this in Ephesians chapter 2, verses 1 through 5, “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions – it is by grace you have been saved.” (NIV)

Unfortunately, when we are called to show to others the same mercy God has given us, we often find that we cannot do it. In our own strength it is impossible. However, we do not have to rely on our own strength. Corrie Ten Boom continues her story,

“…I breathed a silent prayer. Jesus, I cannot forgive him. Give me Your forgiveness.

“As I took his hand the most incredible thing happened. From my shoulder along my arm and through my hand a current seemed to pass from me to him, while into my heart sprang a love for this stranger that almost overwhelmed me.

“And so I discovered that it is not on our forgiveness any more than on our goodness that the world’s healing hinges, but on His. When He tells us to love our enemies, He gives, along with the command, the love itself.”

Each week we gather to remember and celebrate the mercy God showed us. As we eat the bread which represents Christ’s body, and as we drink the cup which represents His blood which takes away our sins, let’s give thanks for His mercy. Let us also ask for the ability to show the same kind of mercy to those who have sinned against us.