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Bible Study Lords Supper

A-Christine, would you be willing to do some homework and provide a summary of each teaching moment in the above format as it relates to the theme of Table?

Sure, I'll do what I can. Give me a bit of time.
 
A-Christian,
I will make a distinction here. The Roman Catholic church believes that the bread and wine actually turn into the body and blood of Christ. I do not.

The Orthodox Catholic church leaves this paradox as a mystery. I believe the Orthodox church has a very well balanced view in this area and I tend to agree with them. To split the church over whether the bread and wine is the body and blood of Christ was foreign to the first century church and I refuse to debate the issue with you or any other Roman Catholic member. By debating this issue, it takes away from the ministry of Christ to unify the Church in communion as the body of Christ.

Meanwhile, the mainstream protestant church views the “Lords Supper†simply as a memorial. They have in essence sterilized the tradition to a monthly memorial where the focus is almost entirely focused on self and the suffering of Christ. They have for the most part missed the fact that Christ is present when we come together to break bread and partake of the cup and from what I have seen, the focus is more on the alter (cross) than the resurrection. Christ does not serve from the cross, he serves at the table. The table is where the sick are ministered to and where we as the body of Christ unite in communion with one another as the Body of Christ with Christ himself.

As far as the word Eucharist, it comes from the Greek word eucharistia, which simply means, “To give thanksâ€Â.

To summarize, when we come before the emblems, we give thanks for the suffering of Christ because without his willingness to go to the cross, salvation would not be possible. As a family, we also give thanks with the assurance of our salvation that is through Christ and Christ alone.
 
StoveBolts said:
A-Christian,
I will make a distinction here. The Roman Catholic church believes that the bread and wine actually turn into the body and blood of Christ. I do not.

The Orthodox Catholic church leaves this paradox as a mystery. I believe the Orthodox church has a very well balanced view in this area and I tend to agree with them. To split the church over whether the bread and wine is the body and blood of Christ was foreign to the first century church and I refuse to debate the issue with you or any other Roman Catholic member. By debating this issue, it takes away from the ministry of Christ to unify the Church in communion as the body of Christ.

Jeff,

While it is true that the Scholastics attempted to name what occured during the Consecration, calling it 'transubstantiation', it is pretty clear that the Orthodox Church believe that Christ is actually present at the table in the form of bread and wine. They are content to leave the mystery 'undefined'. After discussing these issues with them, it is clear that they believe in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharisted bread - which, according to the Church Fathers, has been unanimously taught. Of all mysteries of Christianity, it appears to be the most widely accepted, more so than whether Jesus was God, for example.

I believe the Orthodox take umbrage at the Catholic attempt to rationalize a mystery, not whether the mystery occurs or not...

I will try to keep my input to clarifying things, as we have an Apologetic forum for such discussions. Thus, I will try not to "argue" or "apologize" here, but merely clarify.

Carry on!

Regards,

Joe
 
5:27-32
Jesus wanted to be around sinners so that he could influence them.


7:36-50
Faith, hope, love, sorrow for sin, go along way toward being forgiving of some sins.


9:10-17
Feeding 5000 with little food, seems like a miracle.


10:38-42
Sounds like Mary recognized that what was really important at the moment was simply listening to the words of Christ, not rushing around tending to worldly things.


11:37-54
Clean cups but dirty hearts.


14:1-24
Very important to be a humble servant.


19:1-10
Once again, Jesus seeks out a sinner and folks jump to the wrong conclusions. The sinner accepts Christ and Jesus grants salvation to that person.

22:7-38
Jesus institutes the sacrament of the Eucharist. Also stress the importance of being a servant and also recognizes that mere men will not be perfect though they feel strongly that they should be.


24:7-38
Christ rises,

24:13-35


24:36-53
Christ give them the ability to understand the scriptures so that they may preach truth.
 
Thank you for clearing that up Joe. :wink:

I appreciate your input. Please, if you see anything else that I have said that is in gross error, please speak up.

I appreciate your input.

Jeff
 
A-Christian,
That was a pretty good try! :D
I'm really surprised though, that you didn't catch Luke 24:13-35. Don't feel bad though, most people don't. :wink:

Here's what a fellow member of our Church came up with. Let me know what you think while keeping in mind that moving forward, this will be a simple theological reference as I'm assuming everyone is familiar with these passages. If not, you need to be.

Text: Luke 5:27-32
Meal: Banquet at Levi’s House
Participants: Tax collectors & sinners
Significance: Evangelism
Teaching Moment: “I have come to call not the righteous, but the sinners to repentance.â€Â

Text: Luke 7:36-50
Meal: Dinner as Simon the Pharisee’s house
Participants: Pharisees, guests & the sinful woman.
Significance: Reconciliation
Teaching Moment: “Your sins are forgiven.â€Â

Text: Luke 9:10-17
Meal: Breaking bread at Bethsaida
Participants: 5000 males
Significance: Mission / service
Teaching Moment: “You give them something to eat.â€Â

Text: Luke 10:38-42
Meal: Hospitality at the home of Martha
Participants: Disciples
Significance: Discipleship
Teaching Moment: “Mary has chosen the better part.â€Â

Text: Luke 11:37-54
Meal: Noon meal at a Pharisee’s house
Participants: Pharisees & teachers
Significance: Inner life
Teaching Moment: “You Pharisees clean the outside of the cup but inside you are full of great wickedness

Text: Luke 14:1-24
Meal: Sabbath dinner at a Pharisee’s house
Participants: Pharisees & their friends
Significance: Invitation to all
Teaching Moment: “When you give a banquet, invite the poor, crippled, lame and blind.â€Â

Text: Luke 19:1-10
Meal: Hospitality at the house of Zacchaeus
Participants: Zacchaeus, the tax collector & others
Significance: Salvation for all
Teaching Moment: “The Son of Man came to seek & save the lost

Text: Luke 22:7-38
Meal: Last Supper – a Passover meal
Participants: The Twelve, including Judas
Significance: Thanksgiving
Teaching Moment: “Then he took a loaf of bread and, when he had given thanks, he broke it & gave it to them.â€Â

Text: Luke 24:13-35
Meal: Breaking bread at Emmaus
Participants: Two disciples
Significance: The Living One
Teaching Moment: Jesus was “Made know to them in the breaking of the bread.â€Â

Text: Luke 24:36-53
Meal: Supper with the disciples
Participants: The Eleven & others with them
Significance: The missionary community
Teaching Moment: “You are witnesses of these things.â€Â

All of these events took place while Jesus was at Table... Think about these as we move forward. When we come to the Lord's table, there is more going on than a simple memorial or eating a wafer.

I propose we step back and look at the theme Alter for a bit, and them come back to our study on Table since the two are very much related. When we have got a good view on the theme of Table and Alter and how they are related, then I believe we should look at the Church in Corinth.

Thoughts?
 
I always loved the quote from St. Augustine:

(a paraphrase)
The Lord gives himself fully too us as food. Yet unlike other food where we consume it and it is transformed into our body, we consume Him and are transformed into His Body.
 
Thank you A-Christian and welcome to the conversation Devekut.

This will be a brief study on the theme Altar. I look forward to spending some time on these thoughts with you and others.

We first see Alter in the book of Genesis with Cain and Able. Alter is where offerings were given to the Lord but as we learned early in the story of Cain and Able, the offering was to be done in an unselfish manner.

This trait is exemplified when Abram offered his Son Isaac on the Mountain. When we come to Altar, we do so in faith and commitment to the Lord.

One thing to note, in every instance of Altar, Covenant comes before Altar as the Altar serves to affirm covenant. If we look at the two instances for example, we see that a promise was made and the Altar affirms the promise. (Genesis 3:15 – 4:3 and Genesis 14:4 -22:9)

I'm assuming everyone is familiar with the Exodus account and the Covenant made at Mt. Sinai.

Covenant renewal, or rather affirmation is seen at Altar. In the Livitical accounts, we see many offerings made at Altar as outlined in the first four chapters of Leviticus. Please study these.

In the account of a burnt offering made by a member of the community, Leviticus 1:4 And he shall put his hand upon the head of the burnt offering; and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him.
One thing that I would like to note is that the pieces that were to be placed on the altar regardless of their significance would always be washed with water and the blood would be either poured out or sprinkled on the Alter, often after being mixed with water. Thus, it is a testimony of blood and water to the covenant.

Blood in the OT was viewed as the Life Source (Genesis 9:4-5)
Leviticus 17:11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that makes an atonement for the soul.

Leviticus 17:14 For it is the life of all flesh; the blood of it is for the life thereof: therefore I said unto the children of Israel, You shall eat the blood of no kind of flesh: for the life of all flesh is the blood thereof: whosoever eats it shall be cut off.
Side Note: Think how the Jewish people viewed Jesus’ words in John 6.

When we think of the sacrifice of Christ on the cross, we can many of the OT sacrifices rolled up into one sacrifice.
He was a whole Burnt Offering, completely given to the Lord for the sins of the world.
He was an offering for the sins of those that sinned in ignorance (sin and peace / fellowship offering). Thus, he was placed outside the temple when he was crucified. (Lev 4)
We see that Jesus freely offered himself up on the cross (Peace / Fellowship offering).

In summary, Atonement was made at Altar. Alter was where affirmation and rededication of the Covenant occurred. Alter was a solemn event. Table is where one celebrated in fellowship the renewing and rededication of the promise / Covenant.

Thoughts?
 
Uh.. yeah. I did a passover once and got to see how those traditions tied in.... wrote it down somewhere..... maybe I posted it once. give me a sec
 
Hi Craig!! Glad you could join the study :D

I'd be interested in your past studies and maybe some comments as to this one so far.

I know that I'm not the best at articulating at times, and the Lord's Supper has many, many faucets that can be studied. If all goes well, I'm thinking about maybe having some open discussion on what's been presented so far and then maybe going back to the outline of Luke and talk about that for a bit, then go to the Church in Corinth and then wrap it up with John 6.

Still not sure if that's what will happen. But I would like to keep John 6 and the Church at Corinth until last if possible.

Take care and I'm glad you could join.
Jeff
 
Hey Jeff, thanks for the welcome!

StoveBolts said:
One thing that I would like to note is that the pieces that were to be placed on the altar regardless of their significance would always be washed with water and the blood would be either poured out or sprinkled on the Alter, often after being mixed with water. Thus, it is a testimony of blood and water to the covenant.

This made me think of the following verses:

This is He who came by water and bloodâ€â€Jesus Christ; not only by water, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who bears witness, because the Spirit is truth. For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness on earth: the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree as one. 1 John 5:6-8
 
Okay, and here is the bit about the Seder Haggadah (hope I don't derail where you wanted the study to go). It's a Passover feast as outlined by a rabbi from about 170AD. I'm fairly sure much of it actually HAS the traditions followed by Jesus and his disciples.

The way the Passover feast relates is quite interesting... I'm just going to lay out a few snippets of it: I'm using green to indicate the passover rituals/prayers in the Haggadah and red for the Bible verses...

The Blessing of Wine, KADESH
First cup of wine is the cup of blessing. The cup is raised and a prayer is said:

“Blessed are you, O Lord our God, for you created the fruit of the
vine. Blessed are you, O Lord our God, for you choose us for your service and taught us to
know what is freedom and what is slavery. Blessed are you, O Lord our God, for you honor us
by this holy festival. Blessed are you, O Lord our God, for you have
kept us in life and have brought us to this feast of freedom.â€Â

The first cup is drank.


The Washing of the Hands, URCHATZ

Symbolic act of cleansing for a holy occasion.


(Jesus) got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples' feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, "Lord, are you going to wash my feet?"

Jesus replied, "You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand."

"No," said Peter, "you shall never wash my feet."
Jesus answered, "Unless I wash you, you have no part with me."

"Then, Lord," Simon Peter replied, "not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!"

Jesus answered, "A person who has had a bath needs only to wash his feet; his whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you." For he knew who was going to betray him, and that was why he said not every one was clean.

When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. "Do you understand what I have done for you?" he asked them. "You call me 'Teacher' and 'Lord,' and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them. John 13:4-17


Second Cup of Wine: The Cup of Deliverance

Reading of Psalm 114 and a prayer:

“Blessed are you, O Lord our God, who redeemed our ancestors from Egypt and brought us here to this celebration. May it be your will, O God, to give us life and bring us in peace to many more festivals, holy days, and celebrations. May those times inspire us to rebuild the land of Israel, restore the city of Jerusalem, and cause your people everywhere to draw closer to your service. Then we give you thanks with a new song for our freedom. Blessed are you, O Lord our God, who created the fruit of the vine.â€Â


After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes. Luke 22:17-18

Blessing over the MATZAH(Bread),

“Blessed are you, O Lord our God, who brings forth bread from the earth. Blessed are you, O Lord our God, you make us holy by your commandments and command us to eat matzah.â€Â

The matzah is broken and given to all.


And Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.â€ÂLuke 22:19

Eating of the Bitter Herb, MAROR

We now eat the maror. Thus we remember how bitter is slavery. Blessed are you, O Lord our God, you make us holy by your commandments and command to eat the bitter herbs. Numbers 9:11

The Matzah is broken, given to all and dipped in a bitter herb.


Jesus foresees a bitter betrayal:

Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me – one who is eating with me.†They were saddened and one by one they said to him, “Surely not I?â€Â
“It is one of the Twelve†he replied, “one who dips bread into the bowl with me. The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born†Mark 14:20-21, John 13:21-30


Passover Lamb, PESACH:

The Pesach, the sacrificial lamb, is the last food to be eaten. It is the dessert or “that which comes lastâ€Â. It reminds us that the Lord passed over the homes of the Jews and saved the firstborn from death.


John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! John 1:29

For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. 1 Corinthians 5:7

...The blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. 1 John 1:7


The bones of the sacrificial lamb are not to be broken: Exodus 12:46-47, Numbers 9:12, Psalm 34:20

But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. John 19:33

The Third Cup, the Cup of Redemption

Behold we are about to share the third cup of wine, which reminds us of God's redemption indicated in the scripture: “I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment.†Exodus 6:6 Blessed are you, O Lord our God, King of the universe, who created the fruit of the vine.


Jesus took the cup saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood which is poured out for you.†Luke 22:20

The Cup of Fulfillment, Hope and Freedom
We now partake of the fourth and final cup of wine as it is said: Blessed are you, O Lord our God, who created the fruit of the vine.


This is the cup Jesus was referring to in Luke 22:17-18 that he would not drink of again until all was fulfilled.

Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb! Revelation 19:9
 
Hi Craig,
Great posts. Nice to know you were tracking with your first reply.

As far as your second post, thanks for finding that. I think I remember you posting that last year? Not too sure.

Sorry for the long delay in posting. It's been an odd two days. (I'll post what I've been up to today in the Technology Forum, maybe it will help somebody). I'll also try and move this study along if I can regroup tomorrow.
 
Alright, since there are no questions, let’s do a quick recap and move forward a step.

1. Covenant before Sacrifice
2. Alter affirms Covenant.
3. Alter grounds Table
4. Table is a place of communion and celebration.

A new Covenant is promised in Jeremiah
(Jer 31:31-32)
"Indeed, a time is coming," says the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah.
It will not be like the old covenant that I made with their ancestors when I delivered them from Egypt. For they violated that covenant, even though I was like a faithful husband to them," says the LORD.

The New covenant is agreed to by Jesus.
Luke 22:20 And in the same way he took the cup after they had eaten, saying, "This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.â€Â

Jesus approaches the Alter (Outside the camp / temple). Notice, Christ is again surrounded by sinners as is often the case as earlier outlined by example of whom Christ eats with.
Luke 23:33 So when they came to the place that is called "The Skull," they crucified him there, along with the criminals, one on his right and one on his left.

The old covenant was void and all have access to God through Christ:
(Luke 23:45) because the sun's light failed. The temple curtain was torn in two.

A sobering moment where Jesus places his spirit with God. When we come to the Alter, it is a time of commitment and re-dedication.
(Luke 23:46) Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!" And after he said this he breathed his last.

The blood of the covenant is mixed with water and is poured out at the base of the Alter:
John 19:34 But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and blood and water flowed out immediately.

After the resurrection, Jesus breaks bread with his disciples and is made known to them:
Luke 24:30-31 When he had taken his place at the table with them, he took the bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. At this point their eyes were opened and they recognized him. Then he vanished out of their sight.

Excitement and celebration among the disciples and Apostles:
Luke 24:34-35 and saying, "The Lord has really risen, and has appeared to Simon!" Then they told what had happened on the road, and how they recognized him when he broke the bread.

Jesus is willing to eat with anyone who is willing.
Revelation 3:20 Listen! I am standing at the door and knocking! If anyone hears my voice and opens the door I will come into his home and share a meal with him, and he with me.

Joe, any corrections yet?

Any one else, questions or comments before we dig into the meals as outlined in Luke?
 
A-Christian said:
no questions
Oh come on now, you have to have somthing to say about all of this.

One thing that I thought was really cool is how the OT rituals tie right into the death of Christ. I mean, the cross is actually doing what the alter did and the similarities between the sin offering for the people that was taken outside the camp, instead of within the tabernacle is just neat.

As a side note, the tabernacle along with all it's furnishings were but copies of heavenly things. Think about that for a moment and how those realities were realized in Christ's suffering.
 
I’d like to take a step back to the meals recorded in Luke and how those meals relate to the theme of Table.

Meal One
Text: Luke 5:27-32
Meal: Banquet at Levi’s House
Participants: Tax collectors & sinners
Significance: Evangelism
Teaching Moment: “I have come to call not the righteous, but the sinners to repentance.â€Â

The first occurrence of Jesus at Table is found in Luke 5:27-32. In reference to table, the meal was a Banquet at Levi’s house where both Tax Collectors and Sinners were present at the meal. This was an opportunity for Jesus to minister to sinners and thus, this is an evangelistic meal with Jesus.

In this meal, Jesus is calling sinners into fellowship with God through repentance and his presence at Table is a testimony to the grace of God who calls sinners to repentance.

When we meet at the Lords Table for communion, do we outcast the sinners and non believers from partaking, or do we make a call to sinners to repent and come into fellowship with God?

Our next meal is found in Luke 7:36-50. If there are no objections, we can take a look at this meal next.
 
Meal Two
Text: Luke 7:36-50
Meal: Dinner as Simon the Pharisee’s house
Participants: Pharisees, guests & the sinful woman.
Significance: Reconciliation
Teaching Moment: “Your sins are forgiven.â€Â

The second meal with Jesus as recorded in the Gospel of Luke is found in Luke 7:36-50. Again, to recap, the meal takes place at Simon the Pharisee’s house where the motives of Simon were less than friendly. However, in the midst of the meal, a sinful woman comes and kisses, washes and anoints the feet of Jesus, which is something the Pharisee’s were unwilling to do.

Thus, this meal is about reconciliation with God as Jesus states to the woman in the climax of the story, “Your sins are forgiven.â€Â

As seen in the story of the two debtors told by Jesus, the Pharisees saw themselves as in little need for forgiveness while the sinful woman saw herself in great need of forgiveness. Ironically, though the woman was reconciled to God, she was not reconciled with the Pharisees because the Pharisees were unwilling to extend any type of grace or compassion to the woman whereas God, in Jesus is willing to receive the sinner.

Thus, we can conclude from this meal that Table is a place for reconciliation, and not one of hostility and suspicion.

Questions?

Our next meal, keeping in the theme of Table will be found in Luke 9:10-17
Would anyone like to outline this meal in relation to Table?
 
Meal Three with Jesus.
Text: Luke 9:10-17
Meal: Breaking bread at Bethsaida
Participants: 5000 males
Significance: Mission / service
Teaching Moment: “You give them something to eat.â€Â

This meal holds much significance for several reasons.
First, this is the last meal prior to the Lord’ supper (Luke 22:7-38) where Jesus is host.
Second, this account uses the same explicit language found in Luke 22 (he blessed them, and brake, and gave to the disciples)
Third, this meal has many messianic overtones as the Messiah feeds his people and eats with them.

Prior to the meal, Luke sets the stage by telling the story of Jesus sending the twelve out and ends by having Herod saying in verse 9, “But who is this {Jesus}†which Peter answers in verse 20 saying, “The Christ of Godâ€Â.

The story itself includes overtones of Israel when they too were in a “remote place†and God provided manna. Keep in mind, the Exodus event was central to the Hebrews.

Between these verses, we have hospitality, healing, preaching the kingdom, and feeding. It is among these that Peter recognizes the character and signs of the messianic kingdom.

In summary, the meal is characterized by joy, abundance and compassion as Jesus feeds the hungry while anticipating messianic overtones of a future banquet using the same language as found in Luke 22.
 
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