Welcome to Eat This Bread Drink This Cup. The title of my communion meditation today is "Glorious." I read from 2 Corinthians 3:7-11 (NIV). All Scripture quotations are from the New International Version (NIV) and are used with permission.
7 Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, transitory though it was, 8 will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? 9 If the ministry that brought condemnation was glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness! 10 For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory. 11 And if what was transitory came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!
In this passage of Scripture, the Apostle Paul compares two different ministries: the ministry that brings condemnation and the ministry that brings righteousness. While each ministry is glorious as they have their origin in God, one ministry is now preferred over the other. We can all agree that a ministry based on the Law that brought condemnation and death is not the preferred one. This ministry was necessary; however, its glory was temporary and now surpassed. Thanks be to God that the preferred ministry is now the ministry of the Spirit, which brings righteousness and lasts until Jesus returns. Of the two ministries, the ministry of the Spirit has the greater glory. This was no accident; it was the design of God. The Apostle Paul tells the Christians in Colosse (Colossians 2:13-14), "13 When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, 14 having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross." There could be no ministry of the Spirit unless Jesus offered Himself on the cross to satisfy the terms of the ministry of the Law; only then could it be surpassed. Today, we are the fruit of the ministry of the Spirit, and we assemble to remember Jesus and the price He paid for us by partaking of the bread and drinking the fruit of the vine from the cup. What He did for us was "glorious!" Let us pray.
Abba, Father. Today we bless and set aside this bread and the fruit of the vine in this cup to remember Your Son, Jesus. We know that the bread represents His body that was nailed to the cross, and the fruit of the vine represents His blood that He shed for us. As we pour out the wine from the cup, we are reminded of how Jesus poured out His own blood that our sins might be forgiven. Abba, Father. This part of the Apostle Paul's letter to the Corinthians has to be read and reread to understand what he is saying. As You know, the Apostle Peter felt the same way sometimes. But I have to say, it is worth the effort. We love to meditate on Your glory and Your glorious works, and we thank-you that we are the fruits of the ministry of the Spirit. We are righteous in Your eyes by our faith in Jesus Christ, who died that our sins might be forgiven. We remember Him just now as we partake of the bread and drink the fruit of the vine from the cup. We give Him our glory as we remember His glorious gift to us. In the name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.
Today, Jesus invites you to partake of His supper. I read from Matthew 26:26-28 (NIV).
26 As they were eating, Jesus took some bread and blessed it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take this and eat it, for this is my body.” Let us partake of the bread.
27 And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them and said, “Each of you drink from it, 28 for this is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many." Let us partake of the cup.
And the assembly of believers said, "Amen!"
Until next time, from Numbers 6:24-26, “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”
Artist's Note: If you have questions about the Lord's Supper, I invite you to visit my website, https://eatthisbreaddrinkthiscup.com, for a brief overview. The Eat This Bread Drink This Cup podcast is listed in most podcast directories, and I invite you to add my podcast to your favorites and be notified of new posts. There is a written transcript that accompanies each podcast, and you are free to use the transcript in accordance with US copyright law. My prayer is that you will benefit personally from this time with Jesus and encourage others to observe the Lord's Supper. In these trying times, we need to keep our eyes on Jesus!
