In an Unworthy Manner

“For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, 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.’ In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.’ For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.

“Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged. But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.” 1 Corinthians 11:23-32 ESV

A lot like baptism, our taking of communion is not just a ritual that we go through. But it is remembering what Jesus did for us in dying on that cross so that we could be delivered out of our lives of slavery to sin so that we can now walk in holiness and righteousness, and in obedience to him. But it is more than that. It is symbolic of us participating with Christ in his death and resurrection, in us being crucified with him in death to sin, and us being raised with him to walk in newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin but now as slaves to God and to his righteousness (Romans 6:1-23).

The taking of communion, thus, should be a very solemn time in which we reflect on what Jesus did for us, and on our own lives and on how we are doing in living our lives for him, or not. It should be a time of confession and repentance, if the Lord brings something to our minds, or if we know that we have done wrong and we have not yet confessed and repented of the wrong. And repentance isn’t just saying we are sorry. Repentance involves us making a spiritual U-turn and going in the opposite direction.

For Jesus Christ died on that cross, not just to forgive us of our sins, and not just to promise us heaven as our eternal destiny, but that we might live to him and to his righteousness, and no longer for ourselves. And he shed his blood for us on that cross to buy us back for God (to redeem us) out of our lives of slavery to sin so that we will now honor God with our lives. And so we are no longer to let sin reign in our mortal bodies to obey its desires, for if sin is what we obey, and not obedience, it will lead to death, not life.

[1 Peter 2:24; 2 Corinthians 5:15; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; Romans 6:1-23]

But there are people who participate in taking communion in an unworthy manner, and that is because they are those who profess faith in Jesus Christ but who are living in an unworthy manner. For they are still living in deliberate and habitual sin against the Lord, or they are those who just recently sinned against the Lord but lied about the sin and covered it up and did not repent of it, and did not turn from it, but took communion anyway, sometimes so that others don’t think that they are sinning.

But this isn’t just about taking communion, but this is about what communion symbolizes, which is not only what Jesus did for us, but about what is required of us who profess him as Lord and Savior of our lives, which is obedience and holy living. This “unworthy manner” is, thus, about rebellion against the Lord, and willfully sinning against him, perhaps by habit, when we are, instead, to be living morally pure, upright, godly, honest, faithful and obedient lives to our Lord in daily practice. So even a profession of faith in Christ, if not lived out, is an offense to God.

And so if we are living our lives in an unworthy manner – unworthy of the price that Jesus paid to set us free from our bondage to sin so that we could live holy lives, pleasing to him – but while we profess Jesus Christ as Lord of our lives, and while we go through the motions of religious practice, such as in the taking of communion and baptism, etc., then we do so bringing judgment upon ourselves. For the Scriptures teach that if sin is our practice, and not obedience, we will not inherit eternal life with God.

But just because someone is ill or that person dies, it does not mean the person was ill and died because he or she was not walking in obedience to the Lord. But that can certainly be a determining factor in some people’s lives. But we should be very cautious of making such judgments of others without knowledge, like Job’s friends did with him.

But if we judge ourselves truly, in all honesty and openness, in genuine repentance, with genuine heart and life changes in the right direction, and if we continue on that path, and we don’t keep returning to our vomit, then we will not be judged as those unworthy. But the Lord is going to judge all of us according to our deeds. And if we were those who walked in sin and not in righteousness, and not in obedience to the Lord, we will not inherit eternal life. But the Lord disciplines us on this earth so that we may not be condemned along with the world, but provided we surrender to his will.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Jn 6:35-58; Jn 15:1-11; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-24; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-11; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 10:23-31; 1 Co 10:1-22; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

Broken Cord

An Original Work / August 29, 2018

Your bond is broken with your Lord and Savior

And your testimony is separate from Him.

Your words not matching your actions today.

Repent of your sin and bow down and pray.

Live what you testify in truth always.

Purity’s lacking in your life and witness,

For you profess one thing, but other you do.

Not moral, spiritual. Still of the flesh.

Not living in truth to what you confess.

Lying about it puts you in a mess.

Living a lie is your practice, ‘tis true of you.

Masquerade righteousness – none of it true.

Your heart is not given to your Lord God.

Because of how you live, you are a fraud.

Turn from your sin and give your life to God.

https://vimeo.com/287303934