In Remembrance of Me

1 Corinthians 11 (TNIV)

 23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, 24 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.” 25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

Questions for Further Reflection:

Think about the things in this passage that are to be "passed on to us."  Take the scripture passage above, one phrase at at time, and think about what quality it is that Jesus is embodying, and perhaps should be "passed on" to us as we "remember"?

What places in your life remains resistant to allowing what Jesus us invites us to "remember" here becoming fully embodied.  What would it mean to live more fully in "remembrance of Him" in these settings?

Can you think of places / people / situations in which you are involved that this life of the Kingdom seems to have taken root and is growing?  What does it mean to live in "remembrance of Him" in these settings?

CommunionThis morning we had the opportunity to think about what it is that God is inviting us to remember as we celebrate communion.  What does Jesus want us to do when He says to "do this in remembrance of Me"?  Is this just an exercise in recall, or is it an invitation to something much more?  In scripture, remembering is a much richer idea than simply the recalling memorized data.  It is rather, an invitation to a way of living and being that flows out of what it means to take what are focusing on seriously.  When we "do this" (take part in communion) we are not only allowing tangible symbols to remind us of the suffering and death of Jesus, but we are turning our focus upon a God that loved some much and so well that God was willing to experience the breaking of the body and the pouring out of life itself.  And this, not just so we can stand in awe of it all, but also so we can allow what we see to change us.  We remember not only so we can stay informed, but also so we can be transformed. 

We are called to remember so we can enter more fully into the Kingdom that Jesus was establishing by living the way Jesus invites us to live.   That means making room around the table for everyone, letting them know that they are invited and welcome to respond.  Everyone (that is a word worth pausing and contemplating for a moment).  It means living out the the life of that Kingdom in every area and aspect of our lives.  It's an invitation to love and live so well that not even brokenness or life itself being poured out can stop it.   It means to live in a way that says to those around us that we remember!

What we do in remembrance of HIm is not simply a matter of eating special bread and drink special juice together in a community, but actually allowing His life, broken and poured out for us, to become embodied in the way we live!  That's what Pastor Isaac explores with us in the sermon and the service this week.  If you would like to listen to the sermon again, or perhaps for the first time, you can access it in our sermon library by clicking here.