<1- eulogia {pronounced = yoo-log-ee’-ah} blessing, bounty, consecration>
<2- phronimos {pronounced = fron’-ee-mos} intelligent, wise or prudent people>
<3- eulogeo {pronounced = yoo-log-eh’-o} Present Active Indicative, keep on blessing>
<4- koinonia {pronounced = koy-nohn-ee’-ah} fellowship, community, communion>

Communion - the Eucharist - The Lord's Table - that which we are about to share has been called many things in many different local churches over the years. As we come together to celebrate the Lord's Table we should feel solemn, reverent, yet joyous - filled with joy unspeakable and full of glory. The Table that we are about to share is more than an empty ritual. It is a love feast we participate in. We need to understand this before we start. The Lord's Table was given to us by our Savior, Jesus Christ, as a sacred ritual that we are to do:

Luke 22:19 (KJV) "And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me."

The first this that we need to emphasize is that the Lord's Table is a cup of undeserved blessing. The Scripture says:

(Isaiah 64:6 KJV) "But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away."

Though it hurts our pride to know so, God considers all of our lives and all of our works and, apart from the shed blood of Christ, regards those works as unclean, as filthy rags. Our righteousnesses, our own works, though they may seem perfect to our eyes, are considered by God to be filled with iniquity. As tainted things we could not produce good for God. How can that which is dead produce that this which is alive? Our forefather Adam partook of the forbidden, and in so doing plunged all of humanity under the curse of sin.

(Romans 5:12 KJV) "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:"

Death was on all men. Our cup was filled to the brim with death, and the grave was a place of horror and dread for every person. What hope could we have? Where was our redemption? Could our cup be filled with righteousness? Praise God, Jesus Christ came to take the cup of wrath from us, and drank deeply of that cup Himself for us. Isaiah prophesied of the coming Jesus:

(Isaiah 53:3-7 KJV) "He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. {4} Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. {5} But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. {6} All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. {7} He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth."

On the night that Jesus Christ was to die for our sins, He went out and prayed in a Garden. Three times Jesus prayed, "Father, if it be thy Will, let this cup pass from me ... nevertheless, not My will, but thine be done". (Matthew 26:39-44). Jesus knew what drinking of the cup of wrath entailed. He knew that the cup would be bitter, like gall, like the vinegar mixed with gall (Matthew 27:34) that the Roman soldiers tried to make Him drink while He hung on the Cross. The cup that Christ drank from was the cup of punishment that we were due. The bread that we share together, this bread emphasizes that our Lord Jesus' body was punished for me and for you. The drink that we share together, the fruit of the vine, this drink emphasizes that our Lord's blood paid the penalty for our sins.

The Gospel, the Good News of the Church is summed up in these few verses:

1 Corinthians 15:1-4 (KJV) "Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; {2} By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. {3} For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; {4} And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:"

Christ died for our sins, and was buried, and rose again on the third day according to the Scriptures. We were separated from God by our sins, but the broken Body - a Body beaten with whips and spat on, a Body nailed to a tree, crucified. It is significant that the Greek word for crucify is stauroo, which is derived from stauros, which, in turn, is derived from stao, which means "to stand up". Jesus was crucified, that is, he died standing up for us, and all who believe on Him are indeed saved.

It is significant that Jesus Christ instituted the Communion Table at the conclusion of the Jewish Feast of the Passover. The Bible says:

Luke 22:19-20 (KJV) "And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. {20} Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you."

The Passover is a festival, a meal that Israel takes every year to remind them how God saved them from bondage in Egypt. You remember the story: Pharaoh refused to release the children of Israel. Finally God told Moses to have every believer put the Blood of an unblemished Lamb on the doorposts of their house. That night the Death Angel, the Destroyer walked through the land. Every house that did not have the Blood of the Lamb on its doorposts, the Destroyer entered that house and brought death to the firstborn child. Death was escaped when the Blood was seen.

Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God that shed His blood for us. Because He died standing up for us, because we have accepted what He did for us on the Cross, believing that His Blood shed paid our penalty - because of this we take the Communion, the Lord's Table. The Blood of the Lamb is on us, praise be to God we are saved!

There is a fountain filled with Blood;
Drawn from Immanuel's veins.
And sinners plunged beneath its flood;
Lose all their guilty stains!

(1 Corinthians 10:15-17 KJV) "I speak as to wise men<2> ; judge ye what I say. {16} The cup of blessing<1> which we bless<3>, is it not the communion<4> of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion<4> of the body of Christ?

Second, the Lord's Table emphasizes our individual relationship with Christ Jesus. The very word communion, koinonia, means fellowship. What you partake of at this table will not save you. You are only saved when you call on the name of the Lord:

Romans 10:8-13 (KJV) "But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; {9} That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. {10} For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. {11} For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. {12} For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. {13} For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

Beloved, you must first be in communion with Christ before you take of this Table. The Lord's Table is a time of self examination. We do not deny the Table to any, but I say this again - if you are lost, if you do not rely on Jesus Christ as your Savior, do not partake of the Table. If you take of the Table, of the Bread and the Drink, and eat of this Bread and Drink, you are demonstrating to all that you are born again, saved by faith in what Jesus did for you on the Cross. When we eat the Bread we are saying Christ is at work in me. When we drink the fruit of the vine we are saying I am under the Blood - I am saved by faith in Christ. If you are not saved, if you have not called on the name of Jesus for your salvation, then you should not take of the Table.

When I was growing up we always sat around the kitchen table and ate. Momma had a dining room with a fancy oak table, large oak chairs, and beautiful china, but we rarely ate there. Only when guests were invited, special guests, did we sit at the big dining table. When you sat there the meals were fancier, the food was in nice bowls, the silverware all matched! The dining room was for special times - but the kitchen was for regular times. We sat in the kitchen around a table, on padded "booths" that daddy upholstered. It was more cozy, more precious. We laughed and fellowshipped around the kitchen table. Regardless as to whether we ate in the kitchen or in the dining room, you never sat at the table unless you had a relationship with our family. The table was for family, and for people invited to eat with the family. The table was for loved ones, and was how we showed love. You couldn't eat at either table unless momma or daddy invited you - and when you ate at the table you were part of the family.

Beloved, the Lord's Table is for the family of God. The Lord's Table is for those who have a relationship with God the Father through Christ Jesus our Lord. I do not believe in division in the Body of Christ, so I don't believe in restricting the Table to only members of this church. But the Table is restricted to Christians, and by the way, you should be a Christian in fellowship with God. Before you approach the Table, before you take of it, examine yourselves. If you have known sin in your lives, confess that sin to God, and ask forgiveness in the name of Jesus. You should not come to the Table with dirty hands.

Psalms 24:3-5 (KJV) "Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place? {4} He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. {5} He shall receive the blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation."

When we were kids momma always made us wash our hands before coming to the table. If our hands were dirty, we were made to go to the restroom and wash up before we came to the table. In the same way our Lord wants us to "wash our hands" before we come to His Table. There is a danger for the believer who comes to the Table with dirty, unconfessed sin. Paul warned the Corinthian believers:

1 Corinthians 11:27-32 (KJV) "Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. {28} But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. {29} For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. {30} For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. {31} For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. {32} But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world."

God does not expect us to be perfect when we come to the Lord's Table, but He does expect us to be in fellowship, focused on Christ our Savior. If you have drifted from Jesus from carelessness or even deliberately, confess your sin before Him and ask forgiveness in the name of Jesus (1 John 1:8-9). The Corinthian believers were abusing the Communion of the Table, and were bringing death on themselves by taking the cup unworthily. Many were sick, many were weak, and may were "sleeping" or going to meet their Maker early. The Lord's Table is a time to examine ourselves, to repent if need be, and to focus on our relationship with the Risen Savior. You do not have to be perfect, but you do have to be in fellowship.

Leja Messenger was once a Russian baroness with a 300-room castle, who in recent years lived in Michigan. The ex-baroness met God in a remarkable way just before the Russian revolution. One day during World War I, the baroness admitted stretcher bearers carrying a young boy, about 15, covered with bloody rags. A shell explosion had exposed both his skull and lungs and it seemed a miracle that he was alive. The bearers placed him in the great ballroom and the baroness knelt beside him. Realizing that he was dying, she asked if he had a last message. "No last message, lady," he said, "but would you help me pray?" The baroness panicked. Not knowing how to pray herself, she looked around frantically for a priest but saw none. She thought of the Lord's Prayer but could not remember the words. "Too late," he moaned. "I'm lost. I'm lost." He kept repeating the words. As the baroness now remembers, "I felt I was dying too. Then suddenly as if my brain cells were saying words I didn't recognize at first, I was saying the words of John 3:16 [a nun had taught her this verse in a girls' school]. God was prompting me." The boy's face lighted briefly, then he moaned again. "Too late. I'm lost." As if in a trance, the baroness heard herself speak. "Didn't you hear? Whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life. You must believe before it is too late." While she begged the boy to believe, her own heart was changed. Now she says, "He died believing in Jesus Christ. I lived believing. God came to me at that moment and revealed Himself." (From Does Anyone Here Know God?, Zondervan.)

(1 Corinthians 10:17 KJV) "For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread."

Finally, the Lord's Table emphasizes our relationship to each other. As we said before, the word communion, koinonia, means fellowship. All who share in the Table of Christ a partakers of that One Bread, Jesus Christ. The Scripture says:

John 6:32-35 (KJV) "Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. {33} For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world. {34} Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread. {35} And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst."

And again,

John 6:48-51 (KJV) "I am that bread of life. {49} Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. {50} This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. {51} I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world."

We are, together with all that believe, the church of the Living God. We are, together with all that believe, the Body of Christ. We are, together with all that believe, the Bride of Christ. We must be in one accord as we partake of this Bread, of this Drink. We will stand before Him one day as His blessed Bride - we should stand before Him now at His Table, reverently, in one accord.

"AMIDST us our Beloved stands,
And bids us view His pierced hands;
Points to His wounded feet and side,
Blest emblems of the Crucified.

If now with eyes defiled and dim,
We see the signs but see not Him,
Oh, may His love the scales displace,
And bid us see Him face to face!

Thou glorious Bridegroom of our hearts,
Thy present smile a heaven imparts:
Oh, lift the veil, if veil there be,
Let every saint Thy beauties see!"

C.H. Spurgeon