Sermon Title: Six Words - Our Required Response to the Lord’s Supper.
Dearly Beloved,
Greetings in the Name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!
Today, we are going to talk about these six words.
As disciples of Jesus Christ, these six words must change our lives – and as agents of the Holy Spirit – we must believe that these six words will change the world around us.
These six words informs our participation in Holy Communion – the celebration of the Lord’s Supper; and must essentially characterizes why we are the church of Jesus Christ
This season of pandemic has forced many of us to fast – to abstain, and perhaps, rid ourselves - from the norms of yesterday.
Many aspects of everyday life have changed – from how and where we work; to how and where we school; from how and where we run our errands, to how and where we socialize.
Many aspects of church life have changed as well.
The last weekend of March of 2020 is still fresh in my mind.
On the Friday of that week in response to the infolding COVID-19 crisis, the leadership promptly decided to suspend all worship services and ministry activities at the church building.
On Sunday, my family and I came to an empty church; conducted and recorded the worship service in an empty sanctuary – and realized immediately that the season of pandemic also represented a season of fasting for the church – from corporate worship, fellowship, ministry; all of which, represent the expressions of ministry, that each of us might be restored and renewed unto the essence of ministry – who is, Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.
God has ordained this season of global medical crisis to be a season of separation from all things worldly, including the worldliness found in the church; that if we were to receive in the guidance and wisdom of the Holy Spirit, we would come to realize that our lives, our every effort, vocation, work and ministry – must be completely about the Lord Jesus Christ.
And so, for the church, this pandemic may have separated us from one another – but it is meant to return each of us into the Holy Presence of God – in a clear message that our lives must be all about, and center on, Jesus.
We are Christians, because of Jesus Christ – in belonging to Him; being like Him and behaving as He does.
This is the reality of the Communion Message – that our lives must be centered and established completely on the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ.
In fact, this is the reality found in the entire Bible – that our purpose to be part of the church; is not so much be a part of something, but rather be part of someone – Christ Jesus.
To be part of Christ – to “remain” in Him (Ref: John 15) or to be “part of His Body” (Ref: 1 Corinthans 12 and Ephesians 4) – requires that we consider carefully these six words.
Let us read from 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 together.
23 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. (1 Corinthians 11:23-26)
Our proper participation in the Lord’s Supper requires us to understand the significance of breaking and eating the bread, and drinking the cup.
To this, our Lord Jesus informs us:
53 Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.
54 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.
55 For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink.
56 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them. (John 6:53-59)
To eat His flesh; and drink His blood?
The physical action of eating the bread and drinking the wine is meant to be an embodiment of the spiritual reality of “consuming”, “ingesting” and “fully taking in” the atoning and resurrection work of Jesus Christ - remaining in His Person and His Promised Salvation unto eternal life that He alone has wrought for us through His life, death and resurrection.
Thus, our remembrance of the Lord Jesus Christ – when taken with the emblems of Holy Communion - must compel our response to these life-changing and world-changing “SIX WORDS” of our Lord Jesus Christ.
What must our conscious response be to Christ’s instruction to “do this in remembrance of me” ?
To this, we must look to 1 Peter 2:21-24:
21 To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.
22 “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.” … …
24 “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “.
We are to live a life of conscious and constant CONSECRATION.
These six words – accompanied by the communion emblems of bread and wine - are meant to constantly stir our minds and hearts – to convict us - to a life separated from sin, worldliness (the entrapments for sin), and death (the wages of sin)
Through Christ, the cycle of sin and death has finally and categorically been broken.
Nothing can hold us back – except ourselves.
The Christian life – must be a life of constant consecration unto the Lord – a life set apart - for His Will, for His Kingdom, for His Power and for His Glory.
Warnings regarding failure to consecrate yourself.
Here, the Apostle Paul warns us that if we do not commit to a life of constant consecration in remembrance of Christ, we eat the bread and drink the cup in an unworthy manner.
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. (1 Corinthians 11:27-30)
‘So called’ Christians who have forgotten the sacred task of constant consecration through participation in the sacrament of Holy Communion are judged as wicked by the Lord; and live with the guilt of their sins – causing distress to their spirits, leading to physical weakness, sickness and even death; which really means both a spiritual death to the reality of God and His Salvific Love, and a physical death without faith in Christ’s atoning work on the Cross.
Isaiah 59:2 reveals this divine ultimatum:
“But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.”
The warnings are clear:
Separate yourself from sin; lest you be separated from God – and become His enemy.
Hebrews 10:26-31 provide us with further details to this divine warning:
“26 If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, 27 but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.
28 Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.
29 How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?”
If as a Christian – as someone who “have received the knowledge of the truth” – failure to live in constant consecration unto the Lord Jesus Christ is truly living as one “who has trampled the Son of God underfoot.
Every moment you ignore, or even forget, your need to be consecrated – set apart from the world, and unto Christ, you have “treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified” you, and you have indeed,“insulted the Spirit of grace.”
Such is what it means to be Christian.
It is radical, no doubt; but deeply, deeply required.
Ours is not a religion to conform to, but a relationship to commit unto.
The Apostle Paul emphatically elucidates in 2 Corinthians 6:17:
“Therefore, “Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord.
Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.””
We have a relationship with the One, True, Living God; our constant, conscious and conscientious act of coming out from the world and be separate from all worldliness and sin is the sacred requirement for God to receive us.
Our conscious response - our Conviction in response - to Christ’s “SIX WORDS”?
CONSECRATION unto a life separated from sin, worldliness (the entrapments for sin), and death (the wages of sin) – as exemplified, and enabled, by Christ Jesus, our Lord and Saviour!
In every regard, this is our greatest spiritual blessing!
The Apostle Paul speaks to the blessing of living in constant consecration unto God in Ephesians 1:3-6:
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.
4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.
In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.
Christians, we must recognise that our greatest spiritual blessing is that: God chose us in Christ “before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight… and in love, He (God) predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.”
Nothing else must be deem more significant, and nothing else should be sought after.
There is no greater blessing than to be chosen to be holy and blameless in God’s sight; to be loved by Him and to be adopted – through Christ – becoming His child.
Our response to this blessing – which is, our daily response to Christ’s “SIX WORDS” that encompasses and undergirds our participation in the Lord’s Supper must be a life committed to the:
Separation from sin (in being redeemed through His blood and receiving His forgiveness) … unto holiness;
7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us. (Ephesians 1:7-8a)
Separation from worldliness (in having known the mystery of His will)… unto His Kingdom and Purposes.
With all wisdom and understanding, 9 he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. (Ephesians 1:8b-10)
As such.
Every COMMUNION must lead to the CONVICTION for a life of CONSECRATION;
To be set apart – separate from sin and worldliness –
To be made Holy – to remain constantly in Christ; destined for His Kingdom.
Six words; One purpose.
Again.
These six words – accompanied by the communion emblems of bread and wine - are meant to stir our minds and hearts – to convict us - to a life separated from sin, worldliness (the entrapments for sin), and death (the wages/results of sin)
Nothing can hold us back – except ourselves.
To live as Christians, we must commit to a life of consecration – which holds only one thing for us; a constant, conscious and conscientious self-examination of our lives to rid and reject sin and abandon worldliness in our lives.
The bread and wine confirms that you are tapped into the power of God through the infilling of the Holy Spirit to reject and rid yourself of sin and worldliness in every form and measure.
We must renew our commitment daily to consecrate ourselves – to separate ourselves from sin, worldliness and death.
Every time we prepare our hearts to partake of the Lord’s Supper – let us remember His words: “Do this in remembrance of me” – which holds for us not a monthly sacrament, nor a weekly sacrament, nor even a daily sacrament – but a constant sacrament that taps you into the Presence, Purpose and Power of the Holy Spirit to a life set apart from sin and worldliness – to be made Holy, destined for His Kingdom.
Every time we hold the emblems of Holy Communion in our hands, let us seek the Lord for His guidance, wisdom, strength and resolve to identify sin and worldliness in our lives; repent before Him, and rely solely on the Power of the Holy Spirit to rid and reject every minute sin and worldliness that He reveals; committing steadfastly to constantly lead a consecrated life – a life set apart, a life belonging, and reserved solely for our Lord Jesus Christ.
Then and only then, can we truly live “in remembrance of” Him.
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.
Lord Jesus, I acknowledge that I belong to You; and that my life – in every expression – is reserved solely to glorify You.
Thank You, O Lord, for Your revelation that this truly is a season of separation from all things worldly – including the worldliness found in my understanding of what it means to be part of Your Church – a member of Your Body.
I declare that the focus and centrality of my faith; my life, and every effort, vocation, work and ministry is completely about, and for You, Lord Jesus!
Thank You for this divine opportunity to return to the essence of my Christian faith – which is, to be essentially in relationship with Christ Jesus, my Lord.
May I live daily in the knowledge that I belong to You, Lord; and in the utmost resolve to be like You, and behave as You would – for that, I know, is my Christian requirement.
Lord, in all that I do – as embodied in my participation of Holy Communion - may I do everything, and live my entire life - in remembrance of You.
Lord Jesus, I consider Your flesh to be real food; and Your blood to be real drink; for I am nourished and empowered entirely by You.
I believe that because I eat Your flesh and drink You blood, I have eternal life; and that You will raise me up at the last day!
Thank You for remaining in me, Lord; and for the deepest blessing of remaining in You.
Grant me strength to accomplish this daily spiritual discipline of being found in You constantly till I see You face to face!
I acknowledge Your divine Call in my life, and acknowledge Your divine love in suffering on the Cross for the atonement of my sins – Lord Jesus, You have left me Your example – and in this, I resolve to follow in Your steps every moment of my life as You have enabled me! Help me, God!
Help me, Holy Spirit, to live a life of conscious and constant CONSECRATION.
Please remind me constantly – of the words of Jesus, every time I partake of the emblems of Holy Communion – that my heart and mind must be constantly stirred, challenged and ultimately, convicted to conscientiously live a life separated from sin, worldliness (the entrapments for sin), and death (the wages of sin).
May I never be found apart from living a life consecrated unto God – holy, blameless and righteous in Your sight.
May I never be found to be Your enemy O Lord.
Forgive me for the times when I kept sinning after I have received the knowledge of Your Salvation; for during those times, I know that I have been guilty of trampling Christ underfoot; have mercy on me, Lord Jesus! Thank You for Your forgiveness.
Lord Jesus, thank You for the relationship that I have with You. May I cherish Your Presence, Purpose and Power in my life to the utmost!
Grant me strength, wisdom, courage and resolve to fulfill the requirement for You to receive me fully – that in my relationship with You, I will constantly, consciously and conscientiously consecrate myself for Your sake – that I would truly “come out” from the world and be separate from sin and worldliness; touching “no unclean thing” ever! (Ref: 2 Corinthians 6:17)
Indeed, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ” (Ephesians 1:3); for You chose me in Christ “before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless” in Your sight! (Ref: Ephesians 1:4)
May every COMMUNION lead me to the constant CONVICTION for a life of CONSECRATION unto You.
Holy Spirit, under Your care and covering, I commit to a constant, conscious and conscientious self-examination of my life to rid and reject every sin and abandon any worldliness that You have identified in my life.
May I always remember through the emblems of Holy Communion that the power of God is upon me to achieve this supernatural task of rejecting and ridding my life of sin, worldliness and death, and so, I renew my commitment to daily consecrate myself unto Your Holy Purposes.
May I constantly remember Your words:“Do this in remembrance of me” – which now holds for me a constant sacrament that draws me - through the Presence, Purpose and Power of the Holy Spirit - to a life set apart from sin and worldliness – to be made Holy, destined for Your Kingdom.
In this, may I constantly seek You for Your guidance, wisdom, strength and resolve to identify each and every sin and worldliness in my life; and humbly come before my God in repentance – relying solely on Your Power to rid and reject every minute sin and worldlines within me.
And by Your Power, may I lead a constantly consecrated life – a life set apart, a life belonging and reserved solely for God.
I thank You for setting me apart from the world and making me holy; and pray all these – on my knees - in the Name of my King, Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Dearly Beloved,
Greetings in the Name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!
Today, we are going to talk about these six words.
As disciples of Jesus Christ, these six words must change our lives – and as agents of the Holy Spirit – we must believe that these six words will change the world around us.
These six words informs our participation in Holy Communion – the celebration of the Lord’s Supper; and must essentially characterizes why we are the church of Jesus Christ
This season of pandemic has forced many of us to fast – to abstain, and perhaps, rid ourselves - from the norms of yesterday.
Many aspects of everyday life have changed – from how and where we work; to how and where we school; from how and where we run our errands, to how and where we socialize.
Many aspects of church life have changed as well.
The last weekend of March of 2020 is still fresh in my mind.
On the Friday of that week in response to the infolding COVID-19 crisis, the leadership promptly decided to suspend all worship services and ministry activities at the church building.
On Sunday, my family and I came to an empty church; conducted and recorded the worship service in an empty sanctuary – and realized immediately that the season of pandemic also represented a season of fasting for the church – from corporate worship, fellowship, ministry; all of which, represent the expressions of ministry, that each of us might be restored and renewed unto the essence of ministry – who is, Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.
God has ordained this season of global medical crisis to be a season of separation from all things worldly, including the worldliness found in the church; that if we were to receive in the guidance and wisdom of the Holy Spirit, we would come to realize that our lives, our every effort, vocation, work and ministry – must be completely about the Lord Jesus Christ.
And so, for the church, this pandemic may have separated us from one another – but it is meant to return each of us into the Holy Presence of God – in a clear message that our lives must be all about, and center on, Jesus.
We are Christians, because of Jesus Christ – in belonging to Him; being like Him and behaving as He does.
This is the reality of the Communion Message – that our lives must be centered and established completely on the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ.
In fact, this is the reality found in the entire Bible – that our purpose to be part of the church; is not so much be a part of something, but rather be part of someone – Christ Jesus.
To be part of Christ – to “remain” in Him (Ref: John 15) or to be “part of His Body” (Ref: 1 Corinthans 12 and Ephesians 4) – requires that we consider carefully these six words.
Let us read from 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 together.
23 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. (1 Corinthians 11:23-26)
Our proper participation in the Lord’s Supper requires us to understand the significance of breaking and eating the bread, and drinking the cup.
To this, our Lord Jesus informs us:
53 Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.
54 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.
55 For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink.
56 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them. (John 6:53-59)
To eat His flesh; and drink His blood?
The physical action of eating the bread and drinking the wine is meant to be an embodiment of the spiritual reality of “consuming”, “ingesting” and “fully taking in” the atoning and resurrection work of Jesus Christ - remaining in His Person and His Promised Salvation unto eternal life that He alone has wrought for us through His life, death and resurrection.
Thus, our remembrance of the Lord Jesus Christ – when taken with the emblems of Holy Communion - must compel our response to these life-changing and world-changing “SIX WORDS” of our Lord Jesus Christ.
What must our conscious response be to Christ’s instruction to “do this in remembrance of me” ?
To this, we must look to 1 Peter 2:21-24:
21 To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.
22 “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.” … …
24 “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “.
We are to live a life of conscious and constant CONSECRATION.
These six words – accompanied by the communion emblems of bread and wine - are meant to constantly stir our minds and hearts – to convict us - to a life separated from sin, worldliness (the entrapments for sin), and death (the wages of sin)
Through Christ, the cycle of sin and death has finally and categorically been broken.
Nothing can hold us back – except ourselves.
The Christian life – must be a life of constant consecration unto the Lord – a life set apart - for His Will, for His Kingdom, for His Power and for His Glory.
Warnings regarding failure to consecrate yourself.
Here, the Apostle Paul warns us that if we do not commit to a life of constant consecration in remembrance of Christ, we eat the bread and drink the cup in an unworthy manner.
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. (1 Corinthians 11:27-30)
‘So called’ Christians who have forgotten the sacred task of constant consecration through participation in the sacrament of Holy Communion are judged as wicked by the Lord; and live with the guilt of their sins – causing distress to their spirits, leading to physical weakness, sickness and even death; which really means both a spiritual death to the reality of God and His Salvific Love, and a physical death without faith in Christ’s atoning work on the Cross.
Isaiah 59:2 reveals this divine ultimatum:
“But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.”
The warnings are clear:
Separate yourself from sin; lest you be separated from God – and become His enemy.
Hebrews 10:26-31 provide us with further details to this divine warning:
“26 If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, 27 but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.
28 Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.
29 How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?”
If as a Christian – as someone who “have received the knowledge of the truth” – failure to live in constant consecration unto the Lord Jesus Christ is truly living as one “who has trampled the Son of God underfoot.
Every moment you ignore, or even forget, your need to be consecrated – set apart from the world, and unto Christ, you have “treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified” you, and you have indeed,“insulted the Spirit of grace.”
Such is what it means to be Christian.
It is radical, no doubt; but deeply, deeply required.
Ours is not a religion to conform to, but a relationship to commit unto.
The Apostle Paul emphatically elucidates in 2 Corinthians 6:17:
“Therefore, “Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord.
Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.””
We have a relationship with the One, True, Living God; our constant, conscious and conscientious act of coming out from the world and be separate from all worldliness and sin is the sacred requirement for God to receive us.
Our conscious response - our Conviction in response - to Christ’s “SIX WORDS”?
CONSECRATION unto a life separated from sin, worldliness (the entrapments for sin), and death (the wages of sin) – as exemplified, and enabled, by Christ Jesus, our Lord and Saviour!
In every regard, this is our greatest spiritual blessing!
The Apostle Paul speaks to the blessing of living in constant consecration unto God in Ephesians 1:3-6:
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.
4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.
In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.
Christians, we must recognise that our greatest spiritual blessing is that: God chose us in Christ “before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight… and in love, He (God) predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.”
Nothing else must be deem more significant, and nothing else should be sought after.
There is no greater blessing than to be chosen to be holy and blameless in God’s sight; to be loved by Him and to be adopted – through Christ – becoming His child.
Our response to this blessing – which is, our daily response to Christ’s “SIX WORDS” that encompasses and undergirds our participation in the Lord’s Supper must be a life committed to the:
Separation from sin (in being redeemed through His blood and receiving His forgiveness) … unto holiness;
7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us. (Ephesians 1:7-8a)
Separation from worldliness (in having known the mystery of His will)… unto His Kingdom and Purposes.
With all wisdom and understanding, 9 he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. (Ephesians 1:8b-10)
As such.
Every COMMUNION must lead to the CONVICTION for a life of CONSECRATION;
To be set apart – separate from sin and worldliness –
To be made Holy – to remain constantly in Christ; destined for His Kingdom.
Six words; One purpose.
Again.
These six words – accompanied by the communion emblems of bread and wine - are meant to stir our minds and hearts – to convict us - to a life separated from sin, worldliness (the entrapments for sin), and death (the wages/results of sin)
Nothing can hold us back – except ourselves.
To live as Christians, we must commit to a life of consecration – which holds only one thing for us; a constant, conscious and conscientious self-examination of our lives to rid and reject sin and abandon worldliness in our lives.
The bread and wine confirms that you are tapped into the power of God through the infilling of the Holy Spirit to reject and rid yourself of sin and worldliness in every form and measure.
We must renew our commitment daily to consecrate ourselves – to separate ourselves from sin, worldliness and death.
Every time we prepare our hearts to partake of the Lord’s Supper – let us remember His words: “Do this in remembrance of me” – which holds for us not a monthly sacrament, nor a weekly sacrament, nor even a daily sacrament – but a constant sacrament that taps you into the Presence, Purpose and Power of the Holy Spirit to a life set apart from sin and worldliness – to be made Holy, destined for His Kingdom.
Every time we hold the emblems of Holy Communion in our hands, let us seek the Lord for His guidance, wisdom, strength and resolve to identify sin and worldliness in our lives; repent before Him, and rely solely on the Power of the Holy Spirit to rid and reject every minute sin and worldliness that He reveals; committing steadfastly to constantly lead a consecrated life – a life set apart, a life belonging, and reserved solely for our Lord Jesus Christ.
Then and only then, can we truly live “in remembrance of” Him.
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.
Lord Jesus, I acknowledge that I belong to You; and that my life – in every expression – is reserved solely to glorify You.
Thank You, O Lord, for Your revelation that this truly is a season of separation from all things worldly – including the worldliness found in my understanding of what it means to be part of Your Church – a member of Your Body.
I declare that the focus and centrality of my faith; my life, and every effort, vocation, work and ministry is completely about, and for You, Lord Jesus!
Thank You for this divine opportunity to return to the essence of my Christian faith – which is, to be essentially in relationship with Christ Jesus, my Lord.
May I live daily in the knowledge that I belong to You, Lord; and in the utmost resolve to be like You, and behave as You would – for that, I know, is my Christian requirement.
Lord, in all that I do – as embodied in my participation of Holy Communion - may I do everything, and live my entire life - in remembrance of You.
Lord Jesus, I consider Your flesh to be real food; and Your blood to be real drink; for I am nourished and empowered entirely by You.
I believe that because I eat Your flesh and drink You blood, I have eternal life; and that You will raise me up at the last day!
Thank You for remaining in me, Lord; and for the deepest blessing of remaining in You.
Grant me strength to accomplish this daily spiritual discipline of being found in You constantly till I see You face to face!
I acknowledge Your divine Call in my life, and acknowledge Your divine love in suffering on the Cross for the atonement of my sins – Lord Jesus, You have left me Your example – and in this, I resolve to follow in Your steps every moment of my life as You have enabled me! Help me, God!
Help me, Holy Spirit, to live a life of conscious and constant CONSECRATION.
Please remind me constantly – of the words of Jesus, every time I partake of the emblems of Holy Communion – that my heart and mind must be constantly stirred, challenged and ultimately, convicted to conscientiously live a life separated from sin, worldliness (the entrapments for sin), and death (the wages of sin).
May I never be found apart from living a life consecrated unto God – holy, blameless and righteous in Your sight.
May I never be found to be Your enemy O Lord.
Forgive me for the times when I kept sinning after I have received the knowledge of Your Salvation; for during those times, I know that I have been guilty of trampling Christ underfoot; have mercy on me, Lord Jesus! Thank You for Your forgiveness.
Lord Jesus, thank You for the relationship that I have with You. May I cherish Your Presence, Purpose and Power in my life to the utmost!
Grant me strength, wisdom, courage and resolve to fulfill the requirement for You to receive me fully – that in my relationship with You, I will constantly, consciously and conscientiously consecrate myself for Your sake – that I would truly “come out” from the world and be separate from sin and worldliness; touching “no unclean thing” ever! (Ref: 2 Corinthians 6:17)
Indeed, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ” (Ephesians 1:3); for You chose me in Christ “before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless” in Your sight! (Ref: Ephesians 1:4)
May every COMMUNION lead me to the constant CONVICTION for a life of CONSECRATION unto You.
Holy Spirit, under Your care and covering, I commit to a constant, conscious and conscientious self-examination of my life to rid and reject every sin and abandon any worldliness that You have identified in my life.
May I always remember through the emblems of Holy Communion that the power of God is upon me to achieve this supernatural task of rejecting and ridding my life of sin, worldliness and death, and so, I renew my commitment to daily consecrate myself unto Your Holy Purposes.
May I constantly remember Your words:“Do this in remembrance of me” – which now holds for me a constant sacrament that draws me - through the Presence, Purpose and Power of the Holy Spirit - to a life set apart from sin and worldliness – to be made Holy, destined for Your Kingdom.
In this, may I constantly seek You for Your guidance, wisdom, strength and resolve to identify each and every sin and worldliness in my life; and humbly come before my God in repentance – relying solely on Your Power to rid and reject every minute sin and worldlines within me.
And by Your Power, may I lead a constantly consecrated life – a life set apart, a life belonging and reserved solely for God.
I thank You for setting me apart from the world and making me holy; and pray all these – on my knees - in the Name of my King, Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.