The Lord's Supper

The supper of remembrance was instituted by the Lord, that His own might have a very definite way of remembering Himself together during the time of His rejection, and of announcing His death until He returns.

The special instruction in regard to it, given by the Spirit to us who are called out from among the Gentiles, is found in 1 Corinthians 11:17-26; and it was received from the Lord by Paul to deliver to us, so that we might know how to carry it out when we are "together in assembly" till He comes.

Those who know the Lord as risen, ascended, and as present in the midst of His own when thus together, will, as they sit thus before Him, be led by the Spirit to think of all that His great love endured for us and for the glory of God. The Lord and His love will fill the thoughts of our worshipping hearts. Those thoughts mature and deepen as we grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ., but we never outgrew all the grace and love and perfection seen in Jesus, but rather cherish them the more.

The study of the Word in relation to the remembrance of the One who loved us and gave Himself for us should be approached in the sense of the greatness of that love, and of the greatness and grace of the One who so loves us. "The night of His betrayal," when the supper was instituted, will utter volumes to the heart then. The meaning of the broken bread and the poured out wine will deeply speak to our hearts of His body given for us and His blood shed for us, as we remember Him Who did this, the One we now know as victorious over death and the grave, and ascended to the right hand of God. All the Scriptures may be studied in view of this. All point to the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow. The burnt offering, the peace offering, and the others in the early chapters of Leviticus point very wonderfully to the precious death of our Lord, and help us in the understanding of its profound import, as well as giving us a richer sense of His perfect love told out there.