Sermon Title: What kind of warrior must I be?
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.
11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. (Ephesians 6:10-11)
Dearly Beloved,
To put on the full armor of God is to first recognize that we are each called to be warriors for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ in this existential war against the devil.
To this, it is deeply essential to also recognize that the kind of warrior fit to “put on the full armor of God” is far from the kind that the world esteems.
As we re-embark on our series regarding Spiritual Warfare based on Ephesians 6:10-20, we need to begin by asking:
To put on the full armor of God, what kind of warrior must I be?
Clearly, to be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power is premised on a life lived fully in the Lord and in His mighty power – which is, a life concerned with purity and holiness; a life centered around the Lord’s Table and Throne of Grace.
To be a church fully at grasp with the reality of this dark world – to be a church that is truly relevant - is to be a church concerned with purity and holiness – a people concerned solely and wholly with being pure in the eyes of our Father in Heaven; holy as He is holy.
My deepest desire and constant prayer that we would endeavor to be a church that honors Christ – who is pure and holy, fully realizing that sin within ourselves, and our church family, is utterly devastating and ultimately, deadly.
We must each be prayerful and resolute about confronting the sins within ourselves, and then be equally resolute about rejecting and ridding ourselves of all sin in our lives.
To this, our Lord Jesus Christ clearly teaches us in Matthew 7:3-5 that we are not able to get the speck out of someone’s eye until we get the plank out of our own eye.
Our lives must be centered around getting these planks in our eyes.
To follow Christ, we must be able to see clearly; unencumbered by sin.
You are not going to be a real disciple of Jesus Christ or ever be a true agent of purification empowered by the Holy Spirit - unless you are fully concerned with purity and holiness in the sight of the living God.
And through the biblical narrative – especially with what we must learn from the early church; of those who heard Peter’s message were “cut to the heart” (Acts 2:37) – it is imperative to understand that the greatest expression of purity and holiness within any church is the frequency and intensity in which we confront, reject and rid sin among ourselves, and within our church family; as a testament of constant and continuing church discipline – which is, the very process of purification and sanctification that sets us apart from the world.
In fact, it is to this proper understanding and reception of the emblems of communion that marks the very beginning and basis of Church Discipline.
That is what Paul meant precisely in his instruction that “everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup.” (1 Corinthians 11:28)
Church, understand this well.
We are neither called, nor required, to confront or call out the sins of the world; ahead of the sins we must confront within ourselves.
In fact, it is through our tenacious confrontation and resolute victory over sin that the world would be led and compelled to realise their need to do the same.
Nothing we can say would matter to the world, much more lead them to Christ – if we do not confront sin and rid it from our own lives; and be totally concerned with being pure and holy; just as, our God is pure and holy.
We must become a church not for the masses – but a church so concerned with purity, so concerned with seeking the Kingdom of God and His righteousness; that the only kind of people who remains behind, the only kind of people we attract – are those who are truly concerned about purity and holiness; those who truly love righteousness and hate sin.
Understand that people who genuinely loves God, His Righteousness, and abhors sin will always look for a spiritual family to belong to where members of that family care deeply about their righteousness, purity and holiness before God in mutual accountability
I am very aware of people who come to this church and leave very quickly. But I know why you stay – it is because you love God, and you love the things of God – the things that He affirms, commands and requires. You love His Way, His Truth and His Life – and you know that holiness and purity are the defining reality of those who belong to Him – those who are children of the living God.
May Holiness and Purity be the defining reality of this church now and forevermore.
And it is precisely when we celebrate Holy Communion Service that we come to terms with our holiness and purity – for it is during this holy sacrament that we become concerned with purity in urgently confronting the sins in our lives.
In this, the proper posture required for us to come before the Lord at His table of grace – which is, the kind of warrior worthy of God’s Kingdom and able to stand against the forces of darkness - is in being fully concerned with being found pure and holy in His sight.
To this, we must look at our text today from 1 Corinthians 11:23-32, and embrace the five aspects of what it means to be fully concerned about purity and holiness is the sight of God:
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.
27 So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.
28 Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup.
29 For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves.
30 That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep.
31 But if we were more discerning with regard to ourselves, we would not come under such judgment.
32 Nevertheless, when we are judged in this way by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be finally condemned with the world.
1. In being fully concerned with being found pure and holy in God’s sight: is to live solely for the sake of remembering and responding Christ’s Atoning Work on the Cross
“…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.” (1 Corinthians 11:24-25)
Our lives must be lived in inward remembrance and outward response to the atoning work of Christ on the cross.
His sacrifice on the Cross for our sin and, thus, God’s forgiveness of our sins and our deliverance from death, which is the wages of sin, the moment we believe and follow Him; the resounding defeat of the devil and his forces; and our citizenship in the Present and Coming Kingdom of God all made possible by the Lord’s death - must necessarily be constantly in our hearts and consistently lived out in faith, hope and love in our Lord Jesus Christ.
For in the bread, we remember that His body was broken for our sakes; and in the cup, we remember that He shed His blood that we may enter into New Covenant relationship with the living God – our Heavenly Father.
We remember His work of atonement on the Cross by which we are saved; and through which, we are justified by faith.
And we realise that we are all the same – utter sinners in utter need of the Saviour; that regardless of who we are, what we are, what our jobs are, how deeply we understand the bible, or even how much we know about the world around us – we are all the same; utter sinners in utter need of a saviour.
This is where we must be found – on our knees at the foot of the Cross in repentance of our sins and acceptance of His Salvation and love for us.
And our lives must manifest the reality of our inward remembrance of the Lord’s death, resurrection and ascension – through eternal gratitude, praise, worship, surrendered-ness, humility, prayer and devotion to Him, His Word and His Work in and through our lives.
Our faith in Christ must be so overt that the world clearly witnesses that we remember Christ all the time – because we are unreservedly concerned about purity and holiness in God’s sight.
2. In being fully concerned with being found pure and holy in God’s sight: is to live in holy communion with Jesus Christ.
26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. (1 Corinthians 11:26)
14 Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry.
15 I speak to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say.
16 Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? (1 Corinthians 10:14-16)
In order to truly proclaim the Lord’s death, we must fully believe that He lives today, and through our present communion with Him - participate in His work of inbreaking the Kingdom of God (in “participation in the blood of Christ”) through actively participating in His Church (in “participation in the body of Christ”).
To be concerned with purity and holiness requires that we live in Christ’s Presence together – to share our lives with Christ, and to celebrate this shared life in Christ.
In proclaiming the Lord’s death until He comes requires that our lives fully live in Christ’s Presence – and as such, live out His form of purity and holiness – in accordance to His commands, instructions and requirements.
Purity and holiness is both an individual and corporate endeavor – one cannot exist without the other.
To be pure and holy is to enter into the presence of Christ together, and live fully in His Presence together – through intimate relationship with Jesus.
Here, we are past just “knowing about” Jesus.
Do you talk to Him? Do you spend time with Him – intentionally, not incidentally?
Talking to him on a car ride is good, but intentionally setting aside time daily to be with Him – and not just to talk, but listen to Him - is critical.
And we must do so – together.
The Lord’s Supper reminds us of this aspect of our relationship with God.
To be pure and holy requires that we must a relationship with God who is pure and holy – together in worship, and in prayer.
The Lord’s Supper celebrates the reality that Christ is in our lives, and we are in His.
3. In being fully concerned with being found pure and holy in God’s sight: is to commune with, and edify, one another towards purity and holiness – fully filled with His Holy Spirit, and fully embracing His Commands.
26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. (1 Corinthians 11:26)
17 Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all share the one loaf. (1 Corinthians 10:17)
To be concerned with purity and holiness requires that we live together as God’s Children collectively concerned with living literally as saints – pure and holy saints – a people fully united in Christ, fully governed by His Commands and fully filled with His Holy Spirit; and a people thoroughly conscientious about pushing each other towards purity and holiness, motivating and encouraging one another to be more and more like our Lord Jesus Christ, in faith and hope of our common destiny – which is, eternal life in the Kingdom of God.
As distinctly expounded by the Apostle Paul in Ephesians 4:4-5 that:
“4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
The one body, the one Holy Spirit, the one Hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all” makes everything about our Christian existence crystal clear.
Our sense of being and belonging is clear; our vision is clear; our destiny is clear.
The lives that we must live is clear; the direction and decisions of our lives is clear.
In Christ, and in utterly belonging to Him – there is simply no ambivalence, no ambiguity, with no room for apathy or ignorance – it is crystal clear – this is who we are: Christ is who we must live for, His Kingdom is where we are headed, and purity and holiness in His sight is the only way to live; for Christ is the only way to the Father.
To be concerned about purity and holiness is to celebrate and anticipate our common and corporate eternal life through oneness with Christ, and oneness in the body of Christ.
At the Lord’s table is where we remember to be the warrior substantiated with an overwhelming and urgent concern for purity and holiness; and live in the importance of our spiritual unity of loving one another, seeking peace with one another, experiencing true fellowship with one another, ministering to one another, edifying one another, correcting one another, serving one another, and motivating one another towards Christ and His Kingdom.
4. In being fully concerned with being found pure and holy in God’s sight: is to honor, worship and revere the Lord in the highest and to the utmost.
“27 So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 11:27)
“…20 the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons. 21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord’s table and the table of demons. 22 Are we trying to arouse the Lord’s jealousy? Are we stronger than he?” (1 Corinthians 10:20-22)
To be concerned about purity and holiness is to make a choice to be found at the Lord’s table, and not at the table of demons; it is to make a choice of living for the Lord, and not for the devil.
There is simply no middle ground.
To be a people – pure and holy in the sight of God – is to be singular in our worship, in our priorities in life and in our endeavors; and that is - to honor, worship, and revere the Lord in the highest and to the utmost.
Regardless of what you do, or who you are in life – the fundamental reason for our existence must be singularly supernatural – and that is; to live for the glory of God – through our lives of honor, worship and reverence unto Him.
When we choose to be pure and holy - when we choose to come to the Lord’s table - we are choosing to completely leave behind the table of demons and all of his nefarious entrapments and his false promises of fulfillment in this world.
Again, there is no middle ground here; there is no straddling in-between tables.
There is absolutely no state of mixed loyalty, that’s what Paul is saying to us.
At the Lord’s table – as with being a warrior concerned with purity and holiness - there is no more holding onto anything that is sinful, wicked, false,worldly; anything that is demonic, anything that is of the darkness.
At the Lord’s table – where you are intentionally choosing to be pure and holy - is where you must leave, reject and rid yourself of all that is of the world, of the flesh and of the demons; everything that is dark, depressive and demonic. It is precisely at the Lord’s table is where you reject and rid of all these things.
Christ is Lord of all, and Christ is victorious over all!
His death and resurrection gives us both permission and power to stop sinning!
His Lordship, Sovereignty and Supremacy gives us both permission and power to resist the devil and his schemes.
To worship Christ is to live singular for Him, and to put him first in everything! It is to honor and revere Him in the highest and to the uttermost. In God’s eyes, mixed loyalties is simply wicked, and deadly for the beholder.
Choose Christ, and choose life. To choose neither or both, is to choose to live a lie; and be destined to die.
And so, at the Lord’s Table are we given yet another divine opportunity for a fresh commitment to utterly surrender to His lordship and surround ourselves with His love.
We worship Christ and Christ alone. He must be our all and our everything.
5. In being fully concerned with being found pure and holy in God’s sight – is to be completely subject to the Lord’s Judgement today, regularly examining our own hearts, and be led by the Holy Spirit to repentance, consecration and sanctification.
28 Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup.
29 For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves. 30 That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep.
31 But if we were more discerning with regard to ourselves, we would not come under such judgment. 32 Nevertheless, when we are judged in this way by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be finally condemned with the world. (1 Corinthians 11:23-32)
To be concerned with purity and holiness in God’s sight requires that we allow ourselves to be subject to the Lord’s judgement today.
Here, judgment is not to be confused with the sentencing.
The Lord’s judgment for believers gives us the opportunity to be broken and contrite for our sinfulness. The sentencing for unbelievers is eternal death.
Becoming a warrior concerned with purity and holiness, and coming to the Lord’s table - brings us to His place of purification through the Spirit’s work of consecration (to be set apart) and sanctification (to be made holy).
Coming to the Lord’s table requires us to bring our truest sacrifice – a sacrifice which requires us, in turn, to die to ourselves, to put to death our self-pride and pick up our crosses daily – in absolute obedience to follow our Lord Jesus Christ. (ref: Mark 8:34, Luke 9:23)
King David cried out in Psalm 51:17: “My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.”
To be pure and holy is to put to death every impurity and unholiness in our lives; by humbly subjecting ourselves to the Lord’s judgement today - to come into His Court and open our lives unreservedly to Him – not that He might scrutinize our lives, but that He may search our hearts, and reveal to us the impurities, unholiness, sin, wickedness and shameful ways within us - that we may confess our sins and repent before Him – turning away from our wicked ways.
As warriors concerned with purity and holiness, we must each examine our hearts when we come before the Lord’s Table; and we must each bring our sacrifices of brokenness and contrition for the sins in our lives.
Why is that the only way to come to the Lord’s Table?
“For those eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves.” (1 Corinthians 11:29)
If you come to the Lord’s Table in a thoughtless, frivolous, superficial way - without allowing the Holy Spirit-led evaluation of your own spiritual condition; and without the kind of self-examination that brings out confession and repentance and a desire for purification - you will most certainly eat and drink judgment to yourself.
In fact, you would even incur the rebuke of God in this lifetime – becoming weak and sick, or even dying in hopelessness.
Never allow yourself to be found in such pride; for it can stem only from an embrace of the devil’s lies.
Instead, cast away all pride and come before the Lord in an honest evaluation of your spiritual condition, your heart and your state of sinfulness. Hide nothing from the Lord, your God – for you simply cannot.
Ruthlessly call out your every sin and bring them to the Cross of Christ in contrition and confession; repenting before the Lord, and relying on His Presence and Strength to overcome your sinful nature, the entrapments of this world, and the temptations of the devil.
The regularity in which the Lord desires that we partake of Holy Communion speaks directly to the regularity of our need to come before His Holy Spirit to judge our lives and convict us of our sins; in order that we may be pure and holy in His sight.
To which, if the early church were to exemplify for us - it would be for us to partake of the Lord's Supper daily; to remember His death daily.
How authentic and serious you are in uncovering and rejecting sin in your life, is exactly how authentic and serious your relationship is with the True, Living God.
To commune with the Holy Spirit is to desire to be holy; apart from which, there are simply no reasons nor realities to do so.
To be concerned with being found pure and holy in God’s sight is to be completely subject to the Lord’s Judgement today; and be found willing to confess, repent and return into His Holy Presence.
In closing…
To be a Christian IS to be a warrior concerned with purity and holiness.
Imagine the Church filled with warriors engaged fully in resisting the forces of darkness, concerned wholly to be found pure and holy in the sight of God – coming before Him in brokenness, contrition, repentance, celebration and revival; what a powerful force of reckoning we would be to the world around us.
When we get serious about confronting and confessing sin in our lives; the world has no choice but to get serious about confronting the reality of sin and death in their lives.
And when that happens, they would find Christ – as we have.
This war must be fought; and fought on every level – against our sinful natures, against worldliness and against the devil.
Victory belongs to the Lord; and Christ has made it possible for us to be pure and holy in God’s sight; now, all that is left, is for us to be willing to fight the good fight – and live as full-fledged Kingdom warriors fully concerned with being and becoming pure and holy – as He is.
How would the world know – as we do – that our greatest need is to be saved from our sins?
It is when we – the church – are completely concerned about purity and holiness; and living a life of constant repentance in our war against the forces of darkness.
Shalom.
Let us pray.
Our Father in Heaven,
Hallowed be Your Name.
Your Kingdom come, Your Will be done; on earth, as it is in heaven.
We thank You for giving us victory over darkness - through Christ Jesus, Your Son.
Lord Jesus, we declare together that we have received You as our Lord and our God, and we re-commit our lives to you - resolving to continue living our lives wholly and solely in You; rooted and built upon You, strengthened in the faith as we were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
Holy Spirit, we ask for courage, strength, resolve and wisdom to live as Your powerful warriors fully engaged in warfare against the forces of darkness; and fully concerned with being found pure and holy in the sight of our Father in Heaven.
Thank You for the profound joy and privilege in partaking of the Lord’s Supper; in Holy Communion with You.
Thank You for Your divine revelation that as Your people, we must be solely concerned with purity and holiness – and through our participation in Holy Communion; grant us the deepest desire and unction to live constantly at our Lord’s Table of Grace – in the sacred understanding that Holy Communion must be for us a constant sacrament that transcends time and space, flowing into every aspect and facet of our lives in making us fully and urgently concerned with being pure and holy in the sight of God.
Holy Spirit, strengthen my resolve to:
1 Live fully and solely for the sake of remembering and responding to Christ’s Atoning Work on the Cross;
2 Daily and intentionally commune with my Lord Jesus, living fully in His Presence alongside fellow believers;
3 Commune with one another in our church family, mutually encouraging and motivating towards purity and holiness –fully filled with His Holy Spirit and fully embracing His Commands;
4 Honor, worship and revere the Lord in the highest and to the utmost with my life;
5 Be sensitive and subject to the Lord’s Judgement today, regularly examining my heart, and be willing to be led by You to contrition, repentance, consecration and sanctification.
May I daily grow in purity and holiness; for I desire to grow to become more and more like You, Lord Jesus.
May I daily die to self, take up my Cross and follow You.
Grow me in Your Spirit’s Power, that I may be found pure and holy in Your sight as a full-fledge warrior – for Your Kingdom and Glory sake.
We thank You and pray all these – on our knees - in the Name of our King, Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.
11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. (Ephesians 6:10-11)
Dearly Beloved,
To put on the full armor of God is to first recognize that we are each called to be warriors for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ in this existential war against the devil.
To this, it is deeply essential to also recognize that the kind of warrior fit to “put on the full armor of God” is far from the kind that the world esteems.
As we re-embark on our series regarding Spiritual Warfare based on Ephesians 6:10-20, we need to begin by asking:
To put on the full armor of God, what kind of warrior must I be?
Clearly, to be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power is premised on a life lived fully in the Lord and in His mighty power – which is, a life concerned with purity and holiness; a life centered around the Lord’s Table and Throne of Grace.
To be a church fully at grasp with the reality of this dark world – to be a church that is truly relevant - is to be a church concerned with purity and holiness – a people concerned solely and wholly with being pure in the eyes of our Father in Heaven; holy as He is holy.
My deepest desire and constant prayer that we would endeavor to be a church that honors Christ – who is pure and holy, fully realizing that sin within ourselves, and our church family, is utterly devastating and ultimately, deadly.
We must each be prayerful and resolute about confronting the sins within ourselves, and then be equally resolute about rejecting and ridding ourselves of all sin in our lives.
To this, our Lord Jesus Christ clearly teaches us in Matthew 7:3-5 that we are not able to get the speck out of someone’s eye until we get the plank out of our own eye.
Our lives must be centered around getting these planks in our eyes.
To follow Christ, we must be able to see clearly; unencumbered by sin.
You are not going to be a real disciple of Jesus Christ or ever be a true agent of purification empowered by the Holy Spirit - unless you are fully concerned with purity and holiness in the sight of the living God.
And through the biblical narrative – especially with what we must learn from the early church; of those who heard Peter’s message were “cut to the heart” (Acts 2:37) – it is imperative to understand that the greatest expression of purity and holiness within any church is the frequency and intensity in which we confront, reject and rid sin among ourselves, and within our church family; as a testament of constant and continuing church discipline – which is, the very process of purification and sanctification that sets us apart from the world.
In fact, it is to this proper understanding and reception of the emblems of communion that marks the very beginning and basis of Church Discipline.
That is what Paul meant precisely in his instruction that “everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup.” (1 Corinthians 11:28)
Church, understand this well.
We are neither called, nor required, to confront or call out the sins of the world; ahead of the sins we must confront within ourselves.
In fact, it is through our tenacious confrontation and resolute victory over sin that the world would be led and compelled to realise their need to do the same.
Nothing we can say would matter to the world, much more lead them to Christ – if we do not confront sin and rid it from our own lives; and be totally concerned with being pure and holy; just as, our God is pure and holy.
We must become a church not for the masses – but a church so concerned with purity, so concerned with seeking the Kingdom of God and His righteousness; that the only kind of people who remains behind, the only kind of people we attract – are those who are truly concerned about purity and holiness; those who truly love righteousness and hate sin.
Understand that people who genuinely loves God, His Righteousness, and abhors sin will always look for a spiritual family to belong to where members of that family care deeply about their righteousness, purity and holiness before God in mutual accountability
I am very aware of people who come to this church and leave very quickly. But I know why you stay – it is because you love God, and you love the things of God – the things that He affirms, commands and requires. You love His Way, His Truth and His Life – and you know that holiness and purity are the defining reality of those who belong to Him – those who are children of the living God.
May Holiness and Purity be the defining reality of this church now and forevermore.
And it is precisely when we celebrate Holy Communion Service that we come to terms with our holiness and purity – for it is during this holy sacrament that we become concerned with purity in urgently confronting the sins in our lives.
In this, the proper posture required for us to come before the Lord at His table of grace – which is, the kind of warrior worthy of God’s Kingdom and able to stand against the forces of darkness - is in being fully concerned with being found pure and holy in His sight.
To this, we must look at our text today from 1 Corinthians 11:23-32, and embrace the five aspects of what it means to be fully concerned about purity and holiness is the sight of God:
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.
27 So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.
28 Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup.
29 For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves.
30 That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep.
31 But if we were more discerning with regard to ourselves, we would not come under such judgment.
32 Nevertheless, when we are judged in this way by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be finally condemned with the world.
1. In being fully concerned with being found pure and holy in God’s sight: is to live solely for the sake of remembering and responding Christ’s Atoning Work on the Cross
“…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.” (1 Corinthians 11:24-25)
Our lives must be lived in inward remembrance and outward response to the atoning work of Christ on the cross.
His sacrifice on the Cross for our sin and, thus, God’s forgiveness of our sins and our deliverance from death, which is the wages of sin, the moment we believe and follow Him; the resounding defeat of the devil and his forces; and our citizenship in the Present and Coming Kingdom of God all made possible by the Lord’s death - must necessarily be constantly in our hearts and consistently lived out in faith, hope and love in our Lord Jesus Christ.
For in the bread, we remember that His body was broken for our sakes; and in the cup, we remember that He shed His blood that we may enter into New Covenant relationship with the living God – our Heavenly Father.
We remember His work of atonement on the Cross by which we are saved; and through which, we are justified by faith.
And we realise that we are all the same – utter sinners in utter need of the Saviour; that regardless of who we are, what we are, what our jobs are, how deeply we understand the bible, or even how much we know about the world around us – we are all the same; utter sinners in utter need of a saviour.
This is where we must be found – on our knees at the foot of the Cross in repentance of our sins and acceptance of His Salvation and love for us.
And our lives must manifest the reality of our inward remembrance of the Lord’s death, resurrection and ascension – through eternal gratitude, praise, worship, surrendered-ness, humility, prayer and devotion to Him, His Word and His Work in and through our lives.
Our faith in Christ must be so overt that the world clearly witnesses that we remember Christ all the time – because we are unreservedly concerned about purity and holiness in God’s sight.
2. In being fully concerned with being found pure and holy in God’s sight: is to live in holy communion with Jesus Christ.
26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. (1 Corinthians 11:26)
14 Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry.
15 I speak to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say.
16 Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? (1 Corinthians 10:14-16)
In order to truly proclaim the Lord’s death, we must fully believe that He lives today, and through our present communion with Him - participate in His work of inbreaking the Kingdom of God (in “participation in the blood of Christ”) through actively participating in His Church (in “participation in the body of Christ”).
To be concerned with purity and holiness requires that we live in Christ’s Presence together – to share our lives with Christ, and to celebrate this shared life in Christ.
In proclaiming the Lord’s death until He comes requires that our lives fully live in Christ’s Presence – and as such, live out His form of purity and holiness – in accordance to His commands, instructions and requirements.
Purity and holiness is both an individual and corporate endeavor – one cannot exist without the other.
To be pure and holy is to enter into the presence of Christ together, and live fully in His Presence together – through intimate relationship with Jesus.
Here, we are past just “knowing about” Jesus.
Do you talk to Him? Do you spend time with Him – intentionally, not incidentally?
Talking to him on a car ride is good, but intentionally setting aside time daily to be with Him – and not just to talk, but listen to Him - is critical.
And we must do so – together.
The Lord’s Supper reminds us of this aspect of our relationship with God.
To be pure and holy requires that we must a relationship with God who is pure and holy – together in worship, and in prayer.
The Lord’s Supper celebrates the reality that Christ is in our lives, and we are in His.
3. In being fully concerned with being found pure and holy in God’s sight: is to commune with, and edify, one another towards purity and holiness – fully filled with His Holy Spirit, and fully embracing His Commands.
26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. (1 Corinthians 11:26)
17 Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all share the one loaf. (1 Corinthians 10:17)
To be concerned with purity and holiness requires that we live together as God’s Children collectively concerned with living literally as saints – pure and holy saints – a people fully united in Christ, fully governed by His Commands and fully filled with His Holy Spirit; and a people thoroughly conscientious about pushing each other towards purity and holiness, motivating and encouraging one another to be more and more like our Lord Jesus Christ, in faith and hope of our common destiny – which is, eternal life in the Kingdom of God.
As distinctly expounded by the Apostle Paul in Ephesians 4:4-5 that:
“4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
The one body, the one Holy Spirit, the one Hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all” makes everything about our Christian existence crystal clear.
Our sense of being and belonging is clear; our vision is clear; our destiny is clear.
The lives that we must live is clear; the direction and decisions of our lives is clear.
In Christ, and in utterly belonging to Him – there is simply no ambivalence, no ambiguity, with no room for apathy or ignorance – it is crystal clear – this is who we are: Christ is who we must live for, His Kingdom is where we are headed, and purity and holiness in His sight is the only way to live; for Christ is the only way to the Father.
To be concerned about purity and holiness is to celebrate and anticipate our common and corporate eternal life through oneness with Christ, and oneness in the body of Christ.
At the Lord’s table is where we remember to be the warrior substantiated with an overwhelming and urgent concern for purity and holiness; and live in the importance of our spiritual unity of loving one another, seeking peace with one another, experiencing true fellowship with one another, ministering to one another, edifying one another, correcting one another, serving one another, and motivating one another towards Christ and His Kingdom.
4. In being fully concerned with being found pure and holy in God’s sight: is to honor, worship and revere the Lord in the highest and to the utmost.
“27 So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 11:27)
“…20 the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons. 21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord’s table and the table of demons. 22 Are we trying to arouse the Lord’s jealousy? Are we stronger than he?” (1 Corinthians 10:20-22)
To be concerned about purity and holiness is to make a choice to be found at the Lord’s table, and not at the table of demons; it is to make a choice of living for the Lord, and not for the devil.
There is simply no middle ground.
To be a people – pure and holy in the sight of God – is to be singular in our worship, in our priorities in life and in our endeavors; and that is - to honor, worship, and revere the Lord in the highest and to the utmost.
Regardless of what you do, or who you are in life – the fundamental reason for our existence must be singularly supernatural – and that is; to live for the glory of God – through our lives of honor, worship and reverence unto Him.
When we choose to be pure and holy - when we choose to come to the Lord’s table - we are choosing to completely leave behind the table of demons and all of his nefarious entrapments and his false promises of fulfillment in this world.
Again, there is no middle ground here; there is no straddling in-between tables.
There is absolutely no state of mixed loyalty, that’s what Paul is saying to us.
At the Lord’s table – as with being a warrior concerned with purity and holiness - there is no more holding onto anything that is sinful, wicked, false,worldly; anything that is demonic, anything that is of the darkness.
At the Lord’s table – where you are intentionally choosing to be pure and holy - is where you must leave, reject and rid yourself of all that is of the world, of the flesh and of the demons; everything that is dark, depressive and demonic. It is precisely at the Lord’s table is where you reject and rid of all these things.
Christ is Lord of all, and Christ is victorious over all!
His death and resurrection gives us both permission and power to stop sinning!
His Lordship, Sovereignty and Supremacy gives us both permission and power to resist the devil and his schemes.
To worship Christ is to live singular for Him, and to put him first in everything! It is to honor and revere Him in the highest and to the uttermost. In God’s eyes, mixed loyalties is simply wicked, and deadly for the beholder.
Choose Christ, and choose life. To choose neither or both, is to choose to live a lie; and be destined to die.
And so, at the Lord’s Table are we given yet another divine opportunity for a fresh commitment to utterly surrender to His lordship and surround ourselves with His love.
We worship Christ and Christ alone. He must be our all and our everything.
5. In being fully concerned with being found pure and holy in God’s sight – is to be completely subject to the Lord’s Judgement today, regularly examining our own hearts, and be led by the Holy Spirit to repentance, consecration and sanctification.
28 Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup.
29 For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves. 30 That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep.
31 But if we were more discerning with regard to ourselves, we would not come under such judgment. 32 Nevertheless, when we are judged in this way by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be finally condemned with the world. (1 Corinthians 11:23-32)
To be concerned with purity and holiness in God’s sight requires that we allow ourselves to be subject to the Lord’s judgement today.
Here, judgment is not to be confused with the sentencing.
The Lord’s judgment for believers gives us the opportunity to be broken and contrite for our sinfulness. The sentencing for unbelievers is eternal death.
Becoming a warrior concerned with purity and holiness, and coming to the Lord’s table - brings us to His place of purification through the Spirit’s work of consecration (to be set apart) and sanctification (to be made holy).
Coming to the Lord’s table requires us to bring our truest sacrifice – a sacrifice which requires us, in turn, to die to ourselves, to put to death our self-pride and pick up our crosses daily – in absolute obedience to follow our Lord Jesus Christ. (ref: Mark 8:34, Luke 9:23)
King David cried out in Psalm 51:17: “My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.”
To be pure and holy is to put to death every impurity and unholiness in our lives; by humbly subjecting ourselves to the Lord’s judgement today - to come into His Court and open our lives unreservedly to Him – not that He might scrutinize our lives, but that He may search our hearts, and reveal to us the impurities, unholiness, sin, wickedness and shameful ways within us - that we may confess our sins and repent before Him – turning away from our wicked ways.
As warriors concerned with purity and holiness, we must each examine our hearts when we come before the Lord’s Table; and we must each bring our sacrifices of brokenness and contrition for the sins in our lives.
Why is that the only way to come to the Lord’s Table?
“For those eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves.” (1 Corinthians 11:29)
If you come to the Lord’s Table in a thoughtless, frivolous, superficial way - without allowing the Holy Spirit-led evaluation of your own spiritual condition; and without the kind of self-examination that brings out confession and repentance and a desire for purification - you will most certainly eat and drink judgment to yourself.
In fact, you would even incur the rebuke of God in this lifetime – becoming weak and sick, or even dying in hopelessness.
Never allow yourself to be found in such pride; for it can stem only from an embrace of the devil’s lies.
Instead, cast away all pride and come before the Lord in an honest evaluation of your spiritual condition, your heart and your state of sinfulness. Hide nothing from the Lord, your God – for you simply cannot.
Ruthlessly call out your every sin and bring them to the Cross of Christ in contrition and confession; repenting before the Lord, and relying on His Presence and Strength to overcome your sinful nature, the entrapments of this world, and the temptations of the devil.
The regularity in which the Lord desires that we partake of Holy Communion speaks directly to the regularity of our need to come before His Holy Spirit to judge our lives and convict us of our sins; in order that we may be pure and holy in His sight.
To which, if the early church were to exemplify for us - it would be for us to partake of the Lord's Supper daily; to remember His death daily.
How authentic and serious you are in uncovering and rejecting sin in your life, is exactly how authentic and serious your relationship is with the True, Living God.
To commune with the Holy Spirit is to desire to be holy; apart from which, there are simply no reasons nor realities to do so.
To be concerned with being found pure and holy in God’s sight is to be completely subject to the Lord’s Judgement today; and be found willing to confess, repent and return into His Holy Presence.
In closing…
To be a Christian IS to be a warrior concerned with purity and holiness.
Imagine the Church filled with warriors engaged fully in resisting the forces of darkness, concerned wholly to be found pure and holy in the sight of God – coming before Him in brokenness, contrition, repentance, celebration and revival; what a powerful force of reckoning we would be to the world around us.
When we get serious about confronting and confessing sin in our lives; the world has no choice but to get serious about confronting the reality of sin and death in their lives.
And when that happens, they would find Christ – as we have.
This war must be fought; and fought on every level – against our sinful natures, against worldliness and against the devil.
Victory belongs to the Lord; and Christ has made it possible for us to be pure and holy in God’s sight; now, all that is left, is for us to be willing to fight the good fight – and live as full-fledged Kingdom warriors fully concerned with being and becoming pure and holy – as He is.
How would the world know – as we do – that our greatest need is to be saved from our sins?
It is when we – the church – are completely concerned about purity and holiness; and living a life of constant repentance in our war against the forces of darkness.
Shalom.
Let us pray.
Our Father in Heaven,
Hallowed be Your Name.
Your Kingdom come, Your Will be done; on earth, as it is in heaven.
We thank You for giving us victory over darkness - through Christ Jesus, Your Son.
Lord Jesus, we declare together that we have received You as our Lord and our God, and we re-commit our lives to you - resolving to continue living our lives wholly and solely in You; rooted and built upon You, strengthened in the faith as we were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
Holy Spirit, we ask for courage, strength, resolve and wisdom to live as Your powerful warriors fully engaged in warfare against the forces of darkness; and fully concerned with being found pure and holy in the sight of our Father in Heaven.
Thank You for the profound joy and privilege in partaking of the Lord’s Supper; in Holy Communion with You.
Thank You for Your divine revelation that as Your people, we must be solely concerned with purity and holiness – and through our participation in Holy Communion; grant us the deepest desire and unction to live constantly at our Lord’s Table of Grace – in the sacred understanding that Holy Communion must be for us a constant sacrament that transcends time and space, flowing into every aspect and facet of our lives in making us fully and urgently concerned with being pure and holy in the sight of God.
Holy Spirit, strengthen my resolve to:
1 Live fully and solely for the sake of remembering and responding to Christ’s Atoning Work on the Cross;
2 Daily and intentionally commune with my Lord Jesus, living fully in His Presence alongside fellow believers;
3 Commune with one another in our church family, mutually encouraging and motivating towards purity and holiness –fully filled with His Holy Spirit and fully embracing His Commands;
4 Honor, worship and revere the Lord in the highest and to the utmost with my life;
5 Be sensitive and subject to the Lord’s Judgement today, regularly examining my heart, and be willing to be led by You to contrition, repentance, consecration and sanctification.
May I daily grow in purity and holiness; for I desire to grow to become more and more like You, Lord Jesus.
May I daily die to self, take up my Cross and follow You.
Grow me in Your Spirit’s Power, that I may be found pure and holy in Your sight as a full-fledge warrior – for Your Kingdom and Glory sake.
We thank You and pray all these – on our knees - in the Name of our King, Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.