Episode 295: Discerning the Body | Tim Henderson

Introduction

Alright, so two quick things before we get into the text. About ten minutes ago, there was a white Chrysler minivan outside at the bottom of the ramp, locked with the engine running. So if you have a white Chrysler minivan, and you don't distinctly remember pushing that button, you might want to go check, okay. Or maybe you left it on purpose to run the air conditioner, so when you leave here you'll be comfy, I don't know. But that's out there; that was out there ten minutes ago.

Second, when you came in this morning, you should have gotten this little thing—a packet of pictures of all our next year's class of fellows. We pass these out every year for a couple of reasons. One, we want you to know that they're coming. Our fellows all arrive—the Blue Ridge fellows arrive the weekend of Labor Day, then they'll be with us, worshiping with us the following Sunday. And we're always so grateful for your kind welcome. They're such an important part; in fact, there's a bunch of former fellows over here. Once a fellow, always a fellow, and we love them. We're so grateful for your kindness to them.

One of the most significant things that you guys do is welcome them into your homes. Every year, it's honestly a little bit of a marvelous thing. People invite a total stranger to live with them, to live in their house, to feed them throughout the year. And we're so grateful that you do. It is the absolute bedrock of all that we do—your kind hospitality.

This year, already, all of the female fellows are already— they’re all stolen, they’re all taken, they’re already homed. So there are no girls left. But there are boy fellows left, and I know I feel like I’m selling puppies—like all the girl puppies are gone, but there's still these wonderful boy puppies, and they really are. They won't pee on your floor; they're really good fellows. So I would love to talk about that.

So if you put this up on the screen—I’m not even sure who's in the booth—but if you can put my number up here, if you're interested, you're intrigued, what's involved with this exactly? You're not committing anything. Just text the word maybe to (814) 280-3771, and I would love to tell you more, explain to you. You can see who the fellows are, pick your favorite puppy, and we'll talk about it. It would be my pleasure.

I cannot tell you what a gift you are to Kelly, and to myself, and to the fellows themselves with your kindness and hospitality. We'd love you to consider inviting one of these guys to live with you for those nine months.

The Central Passage: 1 Corinthians 11:29

Okay. So you got a Bible? Open it up to 1 Corinthians chapter 11. This morning's study takes us to what I think is the central passage in the New Testament on communion. We call these chair passages—where the seat of the doctrine resides.

In 1 Corinthians 11, I think, I don't know, quick—would you agree? Do you think 1 Corinthians 11 is the most important communion text? Would you augment it with others? I mean, there's obviously others, but the Last Supper in the synoptics—that's like ground zero. But as far as explanation of it, I think it's 1 Corinthians 11.

Some of these words that Dan read to you, no doubt, sounded very familiar because we literally say them every single week. But some of these words—or at least one of these words—I think is nearly universally misunderstood. In particular, not just in chapter 11, but especially in verse 29.

And I think that if we correctly understand one word in verse 29, that it might just light up what Paul is actually saying, help us see the underlying problem he's addressing, and then position ourselves to do what he's really exhorting us to do.

So take a look at it here. Here's verse 29:

For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body, eats and drinks judgment on himself.

Which word do you think might be misunderstood? If that was a roulette table—and it's not, you're at church—everybody relax.

If we were to put all your chips on one word there, what word would you say might be the most likely to be tricky? What did you say, Lily? Body. She just won the roulette game—good job.

It is the word body. Now, I'm not sure what your intuition is, but most people seem to suppose that what Paul is saying is that if you don't recognize that in some sense, this bread is his body, then you're doing something very dangerous. Coming to this table is a grave and risky thing to do.

Exactly what people mean by that varies. Our Catholic friends believe in a doctrine known as transubstantiation. What that means is they think that this bread has been trans—its nature has been changed to flesh, specifically Jesus' flesh. And while they would grant that the bread maintains all its accidental attributes of bread—looks like bread, smells like bread, tastes like bread—and in fact, its essential nature has been changed to the flesh of Christ. It is literally transformed into that, okay?

Protestants would say, well, don't think any of that's true. In fact, there are some significant problems with that view. But they would still say that something going on in verse 29 there—that the body is about Jesus' body, it's about the bread. And that while it might remain bread, if you don't understand that in some sense this bread is representative of his body, or embodies his presence in some real and meaningful way, if you don't get that that's what's going on with the bread, then you are in grave danger of eating and drinking judgment on yourself.

That a crucial matter when we come to the table is to understand what this bread really is. According to the Protestants, perhaps one way that we might fail to recognize that is by treating it like it's common. You know, like we just come in here, we're just flippant, we're not sufficiently circumspect. We just come forward without a sense of humility and repentance, no confession.

If we don't really recognize, hey, y'all, this is a big deal. This is not just a piece of bread. There's something going on here, and we don't come with a holy sense of fear, then we are eating and drinking judgment on ourselves.

Okay? So either way, Catholics and Protestants hold that Paul is saying something right there in that word body about the bread and really what it represents. You with me so far?

Here's the thing: I think that both Catholics and Protestants fail to understand what Paul is really saying. I don't think that is what Paul meant. And I think I can prove it to you if you're interested in going on a little trip with me, okay?

To do so, to really understand what Paul is saying, what we need to do is peer into verse 29 and pay careful attention throughout the whole chapter to how Paul discusses the communion elements, how he uses the term body in the immediate context, and then finally, what is he actually talking about in chapter 11? What is his purpose in writing to the Corinthians? What is the problem that he is addressing?

Understanding the Context

First, the elements. Notice that throughout all of chapter 11, whenever Paul talks about the bread, he also talks about the wine. Whenever he talks about eating, he also talks about drinking. Every time, there's perfect parity whenever he discusses both the nouns and the verbs of communion.

So go back to chapter 11, look at verse 23. Just listen to what he says:

For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread. And when he had given thanks, he broke it, and he said, this is my body which is for you. Do this for the remembrance of me.

Then, in the same way, he took the cup after supper, saying:

this cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this as often as you drink it in remembrance of me.

Total parity. Everything he says about bread, he says about the wine.

Verse 26:

For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.

Again, total parity.

Verse 27:

Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and the blood of the Lord.

Verse 28:

So let a person examine himself then and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup.

And verse 29, our verse:

For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body, eats and drinks judgment on himself.

Notice, even here, perfect parity—twice—and there's a clause he throws in the middle: eat and drink, eat and drink, but something happens in the middle, and that something is what he calls discerning the body.

What he doesn't say is anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body and the blood eats and drinks judgment on himself. I recognize that might seem like a subtle distinction, but I think it is meaningful.

Every time he talks about the communion elements, he uses both. In this instance, if he is doing that, he's broken his pattern. I think it is far more likely that he has not broken his pattern and that he is saying something else.

When he talks about discerning the body, he is not in that moment talking about the bread at all.

The Meaning of "Body" in Context

What else might he mean by his use of the term body? I think to get a clue, we can look at this broader context.

So, first, we're in 1 Corinthians 11; we're one verse away from chapter 12.

In chapter 12, I want you to notice how and how often he uses the term body. Right?

He says it over and over. Listen to this, this is 1 Corinthians 12, starting at verse 12:

For just as the body is one and has many members, all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.

For in one spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free, and all were made to drink of one spirit.

For the body does not consist of one member but of many.

If the foot should say, because I'm not a hand, I don't belong to the body—that would not make it any less a part of the body.

And if the ear should say, because I'm not an eye, I don't belong to the body—that would not make it any less a part of the body.

Verse 17:

If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be?

But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them as he chose.

If all were a single member, where would the body be?

As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.

He continues like this for some time.

Skipping ahead, in verse 27, he concludes the argument:

Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.

You guys, it is my contention that in chapter 11, verse 29, when he says, "eating and drinking," and "discerning the body," what he's not talking about recognizing what the bread represents. He's saying you need to recognize the gathered community of believers.

That when you come to this table, it is crucial that we recognize we are eating and drinking these elements mindful of the community—the body, the people of God, the body of Christ—that is here.

And if you don't do that, if you don't discern the body, if you're not mindful of the gathered community, something has jumped the tracks—that's what he's saying in verse 29.

Because, you guys, the communion meal was always meant to carry the shape of the cross.

There is undoubtedly a vertical element. We celebrate—we proclaim his death and resurrection until he comes again. It is vertical.

And according to Paul, there is a horizontal element that celebrates our connection to one another, for we are all members of one body.

Paul is saying that if you have over-verticalized but under-horizontalized the meal, then you miss what it means. In fact, he even goes so far as to say that if you miss the horizontal, you lose the vertical.

If that feels strident, listen to what he says—listen to his case. This is earlier, chapter 11, verse 17:

But in the following instructions, I do not commend you, because when you come together it is not for the better but for the worse.

For in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you.

And I believe it in part, for there must be factions among you—in order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized.

He is describing a lack of relational harmony—factions, divisions. Something has gone wrong.

And then, listen to this haymaker—how strong this is—in verse 20:

When you come together, it is not the Lord's Supper that you eat.

For in eating, each one goes ahead with his own meal. One goes hungry, and another gets drunk.

Now, you guys, it is the Lord's Supper that they're eating, ostensibly. That's why they've gathered. Paul says, you think it's the Lord's Supper, you mean it to be the Lord's Supper, but it's not.

You’ve blown the horizontal, so you've lost the vertical.

The problem in Corinth, you guys, was that the people were arriving early, eating all the food, drinking all the wine—being inconsiderate, blind to the needs of the community.

They were not discerning; they weren't seeing the gathered community of believers. They were taking all they could for themselves.

I know this is a little weird for us; it's hard to conceive because, like in our experience, nobody gets drunk at communion. Right?

We're talking about a tiny sip of wine, just enough to taste. Nobody's going to get stuffed off the bread.

But what you have to understand is that in the early church, celebrating communion was an actual meal.

They didn't do a tiny bit; they had a portion. It was a meal. It symbolized something. It was not merely symbolic of a meal, but an actual meal.

Not one tiny piece of bread, but a full portion.

Their experience of it included breaking bread in their homes—gathering with joy.

Jesus instituted a sacrament that was meant to celebrate our connection to him in a way that was also communal, joyful, and shared—a meal, not a ritualized individual ceremony.

The early church was criticized for their love feasts, because they were meant to be communal meals with laughter and camaraderie, celebrating both vertical and horizontal unity.

It was always supposed to be a communal meal—shared, relational.

I suspect that no one from the early church would recognize modern communion. They'd ask, "Where's the meal? The table?"

They were seated at a table, with food, remembering his death.

The Anglican 39 Articles captures this well in Article 28:

Of the Lord's Supper, the supper of the Lord is not only a sign of the love that Christians ought to have among themselves one to another, but rather it is a sacrament of our redemption by Christ's death.

What is curious here is that they recognize both the horizontal and vertical elements.

So, like us, they would say—it's horizontal, of course. But it's also vertical.

And what I'm saying is, of course, it's vertical. But it's also horizontal.

It is meant to be both.

That's what Jesus meant.

And my fear is that in the way it's barbically celebrated today, many could participate weekly for years and never truly experience the love and unity it symbolizes.

In Corinth, they blew the horizontal and messed it up.

Application

So, if you understand what Paul is saying—what he means by the word body—and see the whole context of his argument, I think there are some things worth considering for us today.

We are not guilty of what the Corinthians were doing. We're in a different context; we don't have the same opportunity to do exactly what they did.

But there are implications for us.

Some find the table frightening because of the warning that eating in an unworthy manner could be dangerous.

And I think people often assume that means you haven't confessed your sins, or you've done something wrong, and you think, "Can I partake?"

I believe the table is a welcoming, gracious table. It's a table of grace.

It's not like Mount Sinai—touch and die. No. It's a table of love.

And it’s open to all who flee to Christ for forgiveness and grace, that we might be strengthened by his kindness as embodied in his people.

If you only come when you feel worthy, guess what? You're not worthy.

This table is not for the self-righteous. It is a table of grace.

And when you are most mindful of your unworthiness— that is precisely when you should come.

Come and eat and drink of his grace.

He died for you. His body was broken for you. His blood was shed for you.

Partake of the meal surrounded by the community of your friends, united to Christ.

Second, in light of what Paul is saying, it would be beneficial for us to develop a deeper awareness of the gathered body when we come to the table.

Be mindful of both the vertical and horizontal.

I know it can be hard because of our constraints, but we can come together mindful of our union with Christ and with each other.

You can look around and be aware of the body—you are part of this great community.

We are working on ways to help enhance that experience.

One is, every Maundy Thursday, we celebrate. This year we're doing something different: instead of a foot washing in here, we will celebrate a Passover Seder outside.

This meal was what Jesus celebrated—pass the Jewish Passover—and it's extraordinary.

It offers insight into what Jesus meant when he said, "This is my body," "This is my blood."

We want to understand it more thoroughly together, and we hope you'll join us for that meal.

We'll do this next Maundy Thursday, whenever that is.

We also want to explore how, in appropriate ways, in our life groups, we might occasionally celebrate communion.

Because that's how the early church did it—breaking bread in their homes, sharing meals, being relational and communal.

We want to do that right, within the Anglican tradition, helping you experience both the vertical and horizontal unity.

Lastly, there's been a long-standing debate about what is happening in the bread and wine—Christ's presence in the meal.

While I do not understand it entirely, I believe there's some mystery. I believe Christ is present.

But the key and primary understanding is this: when two or three are gathered, Christ is there among them.

He is present genuinely in his body—the gathered community—because he lives in us.

Every week when we celebrate, I stand over here, and when I look out, I see you.

Most weeks, I don't just listen to Quig or Brian, I look at you.

I see faces I know—some walking wounded, some full of joy, all loved and valuable.

I realize many of you have suffered deeply, carried burdens I don't see, but I can see past the veneer to broken sinners trying to get by— finding in Christ what they need to keep going.

And it is that connection with you that makes the experience meaningful.

It's the horizontal that gives life to the vertical.

Paul exhorts us: discern the body—see the people.

So, as we gather in a few minutes, and every week, don't let it be only vertical.

The vertical is vital—He died, He rose, He will come again.

We proclaim all that.

But Jesus wants us to experience the horizontal, too.

So, as we come to the table, if there is relational brokenness, I invite you—go heal it.

If you're not talking to someone, make a connection.

Help someone in need.

Listen, love, serve.

Maybe host a fellow, show kindness.

We’re going to pray, then in about six or seven minutes, we’ll come to the table.

Remember, He is present here— in your neighbor, in our relationships.

He takes how we treat others as how we treat Him, because we are His body.

Conclusion

I'm going to invite you, if you want to, to come.

One way we love one another is through prayer and caring.

If you have burdens, you can come down front.

If you want to pray alone, just you and Jesus—He’s here.

Or if you wish, come to the sides, and someone will meet you there to pray, listen, and be with you.

We would love to walk with you through whatever's going on.

Offer it to Him—He loves you, and He made you for Himself.

Lord Jesus, we lift You up, we exalt Your name, and we praise You.

We thank You for Your grace, goodness, and kindness to us.

How lost we would be without You, having Your body broken and Your blood poured out for us.

Thank You for reminding us—especially here each week—that we partake in You.

We eat this bread, we drink this wine, we take You into ourselves.

But, Lord, how kind You are that we do it not alone, but in community.

Help us to be mindful that we are Your body, and to live like it.

What an honor that You associate with us—such intimacy.

We love You, and we thank You for loving us.

Amen.