Holy Communion (1975)

THIS IS ELOHUNA. >> [singing] >> And when the hour came, Jesus sat at table and the apostles with him. And he said to them, "I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I shall never eat it again until it is fulfilled in the kingdom [music] of God. Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to the disciples and said, "Take, eat. This is my body." And he took a cup. And when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, "Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many, for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you, I shall not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my father's kingdom." Take our [singing] bread, we ask you. Take our hearts, we [music] love you. [singing] Take our lives, oh father, we are yours. We [singing and music] are yours. On the night when our Lord Jesus was betrayed, he took bread and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take, eat. This is my body which is given for you." The Lord's Supper is a very special event in the life of the Christian because if there was ever a time where the gospel of Jesus and the promise of God's love was made personal, it's when the Christian receives the Lord's supper. Martin Luther was very insistent to express that when Christians receive the bread and the wine, they receive Jesus Christ himself. We think of Paul's words where he says, "The bread which we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? And the cup which we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ?" As we receive the bread and wine, we receive the body and blood Jesus himself. The words which are spoken at the communion meal are the words of Jesus. He says, "Take and eat. Take and drink. This is given for you. this is shed for you for the remission of sins. When the person hears this, he cannot help but realize that the forgiveness which God wants to share with the whole world is at that moment personally his. For that's what the words for you mean. When Christians come and receive the benefits of God's forgiveness because of the suffering of Jesus, it also has something to say about their everyday living with other people. When they receive the benefits from Christ suffering, >> they are at the same time offering themselves to participate in the suffering of the world. God's work in our Lord Jesus Christ demonstrates how much he wants to reveal himself to people. and he makes known the meaning of the Lord's coming through various means. We speak of God coming to us through the means of grace. We identify these means as being his word as it's reflected in the scriptures and spoken by Christian people and also the sacraments of baptism in the Lord's supper which are visible words of God which we can see as well as hear special acts through which he promises to communicate to us his love. Acts which he attaches his promise of forgiveness. We are one in the spirit. We are [singing] one in the Lord. We are one in the spirit. We are one [singing] in the Lord. And we pray that all unity may one day be restored. And they'll know [singing] we are Christians by our love. By our love. Yes. They'll know we are Christians by our love. [music] The understanding of the Lord's supper or communion commonly held by Baptists is derived from the New Testament particularly the words of the apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians the 11th chapter. There the apostle writes that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread and when he had given thanks he broke it and said this is my body which is broken for you. Do this in remembrance of me. In the same way, he took the cup after supper and said, "This cup is the new covenant sealed by my blood. Whenever [music] you drink it, do this as a memorial of me. For every time you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes." Jesus took the bread and gave it to his disciples, saying, "This is my body which is for you. Baptists understand this experience to be ordered by our Lord. That is why they call this an ordinance of the church. The Lord's supper is the ordered or the prescribed remembrance of our Lord which we share. Usually this experience is observed monthly in Baptist churches and the deacons or the layman of the church are very much involved in part in the participation. For the deacons assisted by the ministers serve the congregation. Indeed, each member of the congregation serves his neighbor. The members of the congregation hold the communion elements symbolic of the broken body and of the shed blood of our Lord. until the minister [music] directs that they be taken in unison. >> Take, eat. This is my body which is broken for you. And Jesus said, "This is my blood of the new covenant, shed for [music] the forgiveness of the sins of many. Drink of it, all of you." This makes the experience one in which everyone shares together. It is not an individual act. In other words, it is an act of remembrance and that is the key to it. As far as Baptists see it, for our Lord is remembered, but remembered in special ways. This is no ordinary remembering. A total experience of recall, reminder, and renewal is involved. We recall the living presence of Christ with us, not simply as one who lived long ago, but one who walks with us today. It is a symbolic meal, but it points to a real experience in the life of the believer. An experience of renewal, of recall and reminder, of remembrance of Christ who lived and sacrificed his life that we too might live and know his blessings. [music] Communion in the Methodist church is a reenactment of a very special time Jesus had with his disciples in the upper room right before he was crucified. For us, it is a time of dedication where the individual rethinks his relationship with Jesus Christ. For us, it is a symbolic act where the hope is that each person communing be brought into the presence of God in a very special way. You that do truly and earnestly repent of your sins, and are in love and charity with your neighbors, and intend to lead a new life, following the commandments of God, and walking from henceforth in his holy ways. Draw near with faith, and take this holy sacrament to your comfort, and make your humble confession to Almighty God. The old Methodist tradition was that communion be taken at the altar with each person kneeling. And many churches still do that. Many others, ours included, come and stand at the altar not kneeling. And yet, if they feel moved to kneel, they are welcome to do so. >> This is the body of Christ. >> Take and eat. This is the body of Christ which is broken for you the sins of the whole world. >> Take drink this. >> Methodists in general do not believe that anything magical happens in the service of holy communion like the bread and the wine becoming the actual body and blood of Jesus Christ. For Methodists, as a rule, the key is not the form in which it is served, but rather that the people communing are doing it responsibly and it has meaning to them as individuals. Communion is not something that happens to you. It is something that the individual takes the initiative to be part of on his own. It is an act of responsibility to Christ. His life, his teachings, his words, his death and his resurrection. When the act of individual responsibility is there, then the presence of God is felt. [music] [singing] [music] Oh, [music] [singing] [music] >> all who are truly penitent of their sins, all who walk in love with their neighbors and intend to live a new life are invited to draw near with faith and to take this holy sacrament. There are many things that are basic to any communion service, things that we have in common with most evangelical Christians. However, I think that our communion service is unique in that we have a representation from at least a dozen different countries doing it in the two languages. And so as we remember the death of Christ and we speak of the one loaf, this speaks of the fact that we are one body in him. And as we celebrate together this wonderful thing called communion and we remember his death till he comes but also in every prayer practically that I give when we are praying over the bread. I mention not only the fact of the body which was was given for us but also the fact that that body speaks of our of the one body spiritual body we are with all believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. Shall we pray? Our eternal God, who came into human flesh to redeem us with his own body and his own blood. How we thank thee for this great privilege of gathering together literally from the four corners of the earth to share together in this sacrament for us to be able to share together uh in the Lord's supper sharing together in one faith. It it begins to [music] to emphasize for us the profound universality of of the gospel. Another thing that uh I think could be said about the covenant is that we practice open communion. All people are welcome to share in the communion service. They do not need to be a member of our church. They might be Catholics. They might be Protestants. They might not be members of any church. But if they come and uh express the fact that they believe in Jesus Christ, they are most welcome. What is this? Oh my soul. Oh my soul. Love is [music] the Holy Eucharist is the central act of worship in the Episcopal Church. The eukarist of course comes to us from the time when Christ instituted this form of remembrance and recalling of himself in the last supper with his disciples in the upper room before his death and resurrection. One of the things which we emphasize here is participation by the people in the service. At the time of the consecration, people follow the offeratory procession [music] up and many gather around the holy table. And so that it is actually a celebration in the midst of the people which they are participating fully in and not something which is taking place someplace up in front as [snorts] uh a show or something which is done for them. The bread and the wine which are offered by the people at the eukarist represent themselves, their work, their life, all that they do. This is all offered to God through the priest at the holy table. And then we re then it is blessed and received back symbolically as the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. In addition to the bread and the wine which are offered, of course, people offer their offerings of money and also food uh which is brought up in the offeratory procession from the congregation and this stocks a food cupboard to feed less fortunate people during the week. After supper, he took the cup of wine and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them and said, "Drink this all of you. This is my blood of the new covenant which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Whenever you drink it, do this for the remembrance of me. >> Therefore, Father, we recall the mystery of faith. Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again. >> Many of us have felt that the continued emphasis on our unworthiness and on penitence put the wrong note on the service of communion and that it should be a joy in our redemption and uh salvation offered through Jesus Christ. >> [music] >> Take [singing] our bread, we ask you. Take our hearts, we [music] love you. Take our lives, [singing] oh father, we are yours. We are [music and singing] yours. [music] Yours as we stand at the table you set. yours as we eat [music] the bread our hearts can forget. [singing] We are [music] the sign [singing] of your life with us. Yet we are yours. We are yours. Take our bread. We ask you take our hearts. We love you. Take our [music] lives. Oh father [singing] we are yours. We are [music] yours. Your [singing] holy people [music] standing washed in your blood. Spiritfilled yet [music] hungry. [singing] We await your food. We are poor [singing] but we brought ourselves the best we could. We [singing] are news. We are yours. Take our [singing] bread, we ask you. Take our hearts, we love [music] you. Take our lives, [singing] oh Father, we are yours. [singing] We are yours. [singing]