23For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took a loaf of bread, ²⁴and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, "This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me." ²⁵In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me." ²⁶For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

As I was preparing this sermon, I began to think about how many times in my ministry, I have served the Lord’s Supper. For almost a decade, I have been the pastor here at Covenant. If I have served communion once a month as is our tradition that means that I have served it almost 120 times. Add ten Maundy Thursdays and the number becomes 130.

While I was the pastor at Olney Presbyterian Church, I served communion six times a year. I served there for nine plus years. For ease, let me say that I served it 54 times.

My second church was Bixby Presbyterian Church. There we celebrated the sacrament each quarter. In the four years that I was there, I would have served it sixteen times.

I served as pastor of my first church for the same amount of time. Since we celebrated it only once a quarter there, it means that I served it sixteen times as well.

If you add all the times that I have served communion in my twenty-seven years, the total comes to 216.

As I think back over my participation in the celebration of the Lord’s Supper, I began to think about my part in the celebration. For a number of years, I used the old Book of Common Worship. It was published in 1946. In order to make the book easier to use, I cut the pages out of one of my copies. That way I could carry the pages rather than holding a book.

When I arrived at Covenant, the church was using the service which is part of the new Book of Common Worship. It was published in 1993. For a while, I used the newer service, but I was always uncomfortable with it. Part of the reason was that I hadn’t memorized the new service. Therefore, I had to use the book again. I am not a fan of having a book or paper standing between you and me. So after an interval, I switched back to that service that I used a long time ago.

Why all this talk about the Lord’s Supper? Part of the reason is that we are going to celebrate it this evening as we do every Maundy Thursday.

The other reason is that the text that I read a few minutes ago is the form that I use when celebrating the sacrament. There are in fact four forms of the Lord’s Supper found in Scripture. The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke contain words which are used. The words from 1 Corinthians are called the Words of Institution. I have this Scripture with some modifications from most of my twenty-seven years of ministry.

As with anything that is done over and over, it becomes rote. If we are not careful, we simply say the words. Sometimes these words loose their meaning. For example, we use the Lord’s Prayer each week. How often do we really listen to words? Are we praying or simply saying the words?

If you will bear with me this evening, I want us to think about what Paul had to say. The text says, "For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you…"

Paul was not simply making up the Words of Institution. He received these words from Christ. How did that happen? After all, Paul didn’t know Jesus. The Words of Institution were given to him through the Holy Spirit even as were the words that made up the seventeen epistles which Paul wrote.

Second, Paul identified the time that the Lord’s Supper was first instituted. The text says, "that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed…"

Paul is saying that the Lord’s Supper was first instituted on that first Maundy Thursday night. Jesus and the disciples had gathered in an Upper Room in order to celebrate the feast of the Passover. As the Passover meal drew to a close, Jesus instituted something new.

Jesus took the bread lying on the table. He gave thanks for it. He then broke it and passed to His disciples. As it was passed, Jesus told the disciples "This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me."

As Presbyterians, we have a symbolic understanding of the Lord’s Supper. We believe that the bread and cup symbolize Jesus’ body and blood. They are not transformed into the body and blood.

The text continues, ²⁵In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me."

The cup that Jesus took to offer His disciples was called the cup of sorrows. It was part of the celebration of the Passover Feast. It seems appropriate that the cup symbolized sorrow. Jesus’ disciples were about to truly understand sorrow with Jesus’ coming death on the cross.

Notice the phrase that Jesus used at the end of each command. With the bread, Jesus said, Do this in remembrance of me."

With the cup, Jesus said, "Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me."

Jesus’ words have significance in that both are commands. Jesus is not suggesting that the disciples remember Him through the Lord’s Supper. Jesus is not recommending a course of action. Jesus is commanding an action by the disciples. That command carries over to today. We celebrate the Lord’s Supper because we are commanded to do so.

Speaking of command reminds me of the derivation of the word Maundy. It literally comes from the Latin word—mandatum. This word is the source of our word mandate. It literally means to command.

What was the command of Maundy Thursday? As Jesus and His disciples made their way to the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus gave the disciples a new command. That new command is found in John 13:34-35. Jesus said, ³⁴I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. ³⁵By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."

The new command from which Maundy Thursday draws its name is the command to love one another. I think this is a significant reminder of how we should act toward each other.

The final thing that Paul says is significant. Paul said, "²⁶For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes."

The Lord’s Supper is important because it allows us to look back, but also it allows us to look forward. We look back toward the sacrifice of Christ on the cross with His body broken and His blood poured out. We look forward toward the promised return of Christ. There is a word in Greek that I like to use at the close of the celebration of the Lord’s Supper. That word is maranatha. It literally means come quickly. Say it with me, Lord come quickly. Maranatha.

R. Shane Owens, D. Min.

Covenant Presbyterian Church Gainesville, FL