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arunangelo
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In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and Word was God (John 1:1). What came to be through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race (John 1:3). The Word became flesh and made his dwelling amongst us (John1:14). The Word become flesh is Jesus. He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the World (John 1:29). He is the new Pascal Lamb whose sacrificial flesh and blood brings us forgiveness of sins (Matthew 26:27-28), and seals God’s new and everlasting covenant with us (Luke 22:20). Therefore, unless we eat His flesh and drink his blood, we will not have life within us (John 6:53). He told His disciples that He is the living bread that came down from heaven; and the bread that He will give them for the life of the world is His flesh (John 6:51). He gave them this bread at the last supper saying, “Take, eat: this is my body” (Matthew 26:26). In His old covenant God wrote His words (Exodus 20) on stony tablets. The people were to follow the written words and prosper. In the new Covenant, God became flesh and sacrificed His life to save us from sin (Matthew 26:27-28). Furthermore, He feeds us with the bread, which is His sacrificial flesh (John 6:51) so that we may have Eternal Life (John 6:54). In doing this He imprints His Words on our hearts to change our stony hearts to natural heart (Ezekiel 11:19). This means that believers follow God’s laws, not because they are laws, but because, they are the desires of their heart. In other words, their heart desires what God desires. To make His sacrificial body and blood ever-present to us, He commanded His apostles to celebrate His Supper as often as possible (Luke 22:19). This celebration is the wedding feast of the Lamb (Revelation 5:6) in which Christ unites with His people. Due to our imperfect state we do not see and comprehend the full glory of this union. However, when we are completely freed from the effects of sin we will see its glory. This celebration fulfills what Malachi had prophesized (Malachi 1:11): “from the rising of the sun even to the going down, my name is great among the Gentiles, and in every place there is sacrifice, and there is offered to my name a clean oblation”.
By partaking in this meal we establish a communion of life with Christ (John 6:56). Because Christ is one, those who receive Him, therefore, share a common meal. This brings unity among believers (1 Cor. 10:16-17), which Jesus desired very much (John 17:21). Paul tells us (1Cor. 10:16-17): “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread”. Christians therefore, have celebrated this supper from the very beginning of Christianity (1 Corinthians 11:26-29, Act 2:46, 20:7 &11 and 27:35) and considered themselves very blessed for having the opportunity to celebrate it (Rev. 19:9). Paul emphasizes the importance of the Lord’s Supper: (1Cor. 11: 26-29) “For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes. Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body”. When Jesus first spoke, and told them that the bread that He will give them is His flesh (John 6:51), the one who was to later betray Him (Judas) did not believe in it (John 6:64); it is therefore, no wonder that He left the meal during the last supper (John 14:30). The other apostles did not leave, although they probably did fully understand, how the bread that He gave them to eat was His flesh. They simply accepted it in faith, because, they believed that Jesus had the Words of eternal life; and were convinced that He was the Holy One from God (John 7: 68, 69). God has made Himself to us in many forms. To Moses He appeared as a burning bush, to the apostles as a human being and to us as bread. In all situations it is faith that makes us recognize God.